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Families join challenge in memory of organ donors

BBC A large crowd of people wearing pink coats and pink woolly hats standing next to the cafe at the top of Snaefell, looking out at the hills on a sunny day.BBC
About 80 people took part in the challenge on Snaefell Mountain

More than 80 people have scaled the highest point of the Isle of Man as part of a memorial event to remember Manx organ donors.

The walk up Snaefell was part of the Turn the Peaks Pink challenge bringing the island together with others touched by organ donation on five peaks in UK via an online link-up.

Wearing pink bobble hats, people including relatives of donors and recipients carried pictures of loved ones on the trip to mark Organ Donation Awareness Week.

Campaigner Diane Taylor, whose son Daniel Boyde's organs were donated following his death in a car crash in 2007, said it had been an "emotional" event.

Diane Taylor smiling in front of the rolling Manx hills on a sunny day wearing a pink jumper and bobble hat.
Diane Taylor organised the event, and said it had a "wonderful turnout"

Ms Taylor said she hoped those taking part "find comfort in speaking to people who understand, but also that it raises awareness on the importance of organ donation and having that conversation".

About 7,000 people, including Manx patients, are currently on the UK organ donation waiting list.

Originally created by a team of specialist nurses from NHS Blood and Transplant in North Wales, the memorial walk has been broadened out to other regions.

This year's event also saw groups scale Scafell Pike in England, Ben Nevis in Scotland, Slieve Donard in Northern Ireland, and Pen y Fan and Snowdon in Wales.

Sandra Moore and Rachael Cashin standing next to each other on Snaefell smiling and dressed in pink. Ms Moore is wearing T-shirt with a picture of her son, Callum Moore, printed on it.
The mother and sister of Callum Moore, Sandra Moore (left) and Rachael Cashin, took part in his memory

Sandra Moore and Rachael Cashin, the mother and sister of 26-year-old Callum Moore who died in a motorcycle crash earlier this year, also took part in the event.

Ms Cashin said the "one positive thing" about losing Callum was that he could "selflessly donate his organs and save the lives of three people".

While there was often a focus on receiving an organ donation, there was not as much discussion about the "tough decision to donate your loved ones organs", she said.

"The biggest thing you can do is sign up, be specific and tell your loved ones what your wishes are," she added.

Si Bell A woman in a blue top smiling at a young boy sipping milk from a glass through a straw. The boy is wearing a yellow T-shirt with coloured patterns on it.Si Bell
Daniel Boyde's organs were used to help four other young people

The walk was organised by the Organ Donation Committee at Noble's Hospital and Organ Donation Isle of Man.

The Human Tissue and Organ Donation Act - known as Daniel's Law - to create an opt-out system for donation has not yet been brought into force despite receiving Royal Assent in 2021.

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