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Insights > A life changing experience for Cherlyn Hager sparks a unique Entergy Louisiana volunteer event
A life changing experience for Cherlyn Hager sparks a unique Entergy Louisiana volunteer event
03/21/2024
A second chance at life transformed into a collaborative blanket making volunteer event to honor the families of organ donors.
Here’s how one Entergy Shared Services employee started the initiative:
In 2021, after many years of battling kidney disease, Cherlyn Hager, a workplace analyst for Entergy Shared Services received a second chance at life. She was placed on the Louisiana organ transplant list for a kidney. With a huge act of love, bravery and heroism from a close family member, Hager found a match.
“Our transplant doctor said the chances of us being a perfect match was not only rare but astronomical,” said Hager. “Soon after the procedure, we both made a full recovery. My life as a mom and wife has never been better. Words cannot describe how grateful and blessed I am to have another chance at life.”
This life changing experience sparked an interest in Hager, who vowed to serve her community and be a beacon of hope for families awaiting an organ transplant.
“I was so adamant about finding programs and resources that assisted organ donors, their families and organ recipients,” said Hager, “That’s when I found the Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency (LOPA). They had many events celebrating donor families; I just had to serve with them.”
LOPA is a nonprofit organization in Louisiana that serves the community by supporting families through tragic loss, during the donation process and along the grief journey. One way they support families is by providing hero blankets. These blankets are made by organ donor families or volunteers.
Each individual blanket is dedicated to honor donor heroes whose legacies live on through the gift of life.
“When I contacted LOPA last year and told them my story, they were excited to collaborate and execute a hero blanket volunteer event,” said Hager. “The first event was with my facilities team in downtown New Orleans. They were so excited to jump into gear and help create these hero blankets for LOPA to distribute to donor families.”
This year Cherlyn and the Entergy Shared Services team in Hammond hosted another Hero Blanket volunteer event. Employees gathered to create blankets, package them for distribution and wrote personal notes thanking family members for their courageous and generous gifts of life.
Join us in thanking Cherlyn and our Entergy Shared Services team for coming together to honor families in our community who provide an act of quiet heroism that most times go unnoticed.
To learn more about LOPA and to view donor hero and recipient stories, please visit www.lopa.org.
