Reno Aces and Donor Network West Team Up In Support of Organ Donation
8-year-old kidney transplant recipient from Nevada, Jehudiel Mendoza Moreno, will run the bases at the 2022 season’s first ‘Home Run for Life’ game Friday, April 15
RENO, NV (April 7, 2022) — Native Nevadan Jehudiel Mendoza Moreno began experiencing health issues at just two years old; he battled a severe bacterial infection, underwent years of dialysis treatments, was put into a medically-induced coma and had fingers and part of his foot amputated. He was among the 1,900 children in the U.S. under 18 waiting for a life-saving organ donation.
Fortunately, thanks to a life-saving kidney transplant surgery at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford in December 2020, Jehudiel is now a rambunctious 8-year-old. He will run the bases at the Reno Aces’ Home Run for Life game, presented by Donor Network West, after the second inning on Friday, April 15, at Greater Nevada Field as they take on the Sacramento River Cats. This will be the first Home Run for Life game of the 2022 season.
“Jehudiel’s health issues have changed us. It was very difficult for me to watch him have to go through his health issues and dialysis treatments while his siblings could play,” Maria Moreno Álvarez, Jehudiel’s mom, said. “Now his life is less complicated and we thank his kidney donor and their family. Today, he has a strong desire to live – he is a fighter.”
Donor Network West, northern Nevada’s and northern California’s federally designated non-profit organ procurement organization, is proud to support the six Home Run for Life games throughout the 2022 season. With more than 600 Nevadans waiting for lifesaving organ transplants, the partnership will bring critical awareness about organ donation to the community and its sports fans.
“To see Jehudiel run the bases at Greater Nevada Field will be so powerful for his family and the community to witness – it’s not something he would have been able to do without his kidney transplant,” Janice Whaley, president and CEO of Donor Network West, said. “Jedhudiel has been given the gift of life and he can now dream about what he wants to be when he grows up; whether that’s a baseball player, a firefighter or anything else he wants to be. It’s Nevadans like him that make our mission at Donor Network West so essential in bringing the community together to save and heal more lives.“
This is the first time Donor Network West and Reno Aces have partnered to showcase the Home Run for Life program. Once a month, a brave individual in the northern Nevada community will be honored by taking a ceremonial trip around the bases with each team lining the baselines. Individuals honored have received life-saving transplants or have lost a loved one who saved lives through organ donation.
“We at the Aces strive to be a force for good in our community,” Eric Edelstein, President, Reno Aces and Greater Nevada Field said. “Partnering with Donor Network West on their life-saving mission is an exciting new way we fulfill our mission. We can’t wait to highlight those whose lives have been saved by organ donation in our monthly Home Run for Life ceremonies.”
Anyone can register to be an organ donor. To learn more and to register as an organ donor, visit DonorNetworkWest.org.
— @MyDNWest —
Photo cutline: Jehudiel Mendoza Moreno is an 8-year-old kidney transplant recipient who will be honored by Donor Network West at the first Reno Aces’ Home Run for Life game Friday, April 15.
Donor Network West saves and heals lives by facilitating organ and tissue recovery for transplantation and research. The organization was established in 1987 and is an official Donate Life organization accredited by the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO) and the American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB). Federally designated to serve 45 counties in Northern California and Northern Nevada, Donor Network West partners with the Department of Motor Vehicles and the state-authorized donor registries. For information, visit DonorNetworkWest.org and follow us on social media: @mydnwest.
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