Honoring Morgan Flynn
Southern Oklahoma Teen to be Remembered in National Parade
Join LifeShare for the unveiling of Floragraph for Rose Parade Float
OKLAHOMA CITY (October 31, 2022)— Join LifeShare of Oklahoma as we honor Morgan Flynn, of Tushka, as our floragraph honoree for the 2023 Rose Parade.
Every year, LifeShare of Oklahoma helps sponsor the Donate Life Float in the Tournament of Roses Parade on New Year’s Day to spread the message about organ, eye and tissue donation. As a sponsor, LifeShare is able to send one donor portrait to be honored on the float.
Morgan Flynn will be honored as a tissue donor in a floragraph. A floragraph is a portrait of the donor, created with floral materials such as seeds, grains, spices, dried flowers and other organic materials. She is one of 44 donors to be featured on this year’s float.
Join us as we celebrate Morgan Flynn, who will be honored on the float:
WHAT: Floragraph Honoree Ceremony
WHERE: Tushka Elementary School
2661 West Boggy Depot Rd.
Atoka, OK 74525
WHEN: Tuesday, November 1st at 6:00 PM
PHOTOS: There will be several opportunities for great photos and videos at this event.
INTERVIEWS: The family of Morgan Flynn, donor, will be available for interviews.
OTHER: B-roll footage in link
The 2023 float celebrates the power of organ, eye and tissue donation, with donors and recipients working together to support one another. A spectacular Chinese street dragon is the centerpiece of the float. In the Chinese culture, dragons symbolize great power, good luck and strength. They bring prosperity and abundance.
A colorful dragon winds through flowering trees, lanterns and fans, and is emblazoned with 44 memorial floragraphs, representing those who have given the gift of life. The dragon will be supported on poles by living donors, and surrounded by organ, eye and tissue recipients, whose lives have been transformed and have turned the corner to a more prosperous future, thanks to those who said ‘YES’ to organ, eye and tissue donation.
Join LifeShare for the unveiling of Floragraph for Rose Parade Float
OKLAHOMA CITY (October 31, 2022)— Join LifeShare of Oklahoma as we honor Morgan Flynn, of Tushka, as our floragraph honoree for the 2023 Rose Parade.
Every year, LifeShare of Oklahoma helps sponsor the Donate Life Float in the Tournament of Roses Parade on New Year’s Day to spread the message about organ, eye and tissue donation. As a sponsor, LifeShare is able to send one donor portrait to be honored on the float.
Morgan Flynn will be honored as a tissue donor in a floragraph. A floragraph is a portrait of the donor, created with floral materials such as seeds, grains, spices, dried flowers and other organic materials. She is one of 44 donors to be featured on this year’s float.
Join us as we celebrate Morgan Flynn, who will be honored on the float:
WHAT: Floragraph Honoree Ceremony
WHERE: Tushka Elementary School
2661 West Boggy Depot Rd.
Atoka, OK 74525
WHEN: Tuesday, November 1st at 6:00 PM
PHOTOS: There will be several opportunities for great photos and videos at this event.
INTERVIEWS: The family of Morgan Flynn, donor, will be available for interviews.
OTHER: B-roll footage in link
The 2023 float celebrates the power of organ, eye and tissue donation, with donors and recipients working together to support one another. A spectacular Chinese street dragon is the centerpiece of the float. In the Chinese culture, dragons symbolize great power, good luck and strength. They bring prosperity and abundance.
A colorful dragon winds through flowering trees, lanterns and fans, and is emblazoned with 44 memorial floragraphs, representing those who have given the gift of life. The dragon will be supported on poles by living donors, and surrounded by organ, eye and tissue recipients, whose lives have been transformed and have turned the corner to a more prosperous future, thanks to those who said ‘YES’ to organ, eye and tissue donation.
Morgan Flynn - Tissue Donor Hero
Morgan Flynn, of Tushka, Okla., was born with Cystic Fibrosis. As a young child, she was very sick but managed her symptoms with medication. The disease did not define Morgan, but it created and heavily impacted part of her story. At the age of eight, Morgan received a transplant which saved her life. Even at a young age, she was so incredibly grateful for the gift of life she had been given. She continued to grow up as normally as possible, despite her health issues. Morgan was an upbeat child and teenager. She never felt bad for herself or sat in her sorrow. She saw the positive, smiled often and was known for her infamous giggle. She loved animals and planned to become a veterinarian one day. Morgan had animals, such as a mini pig, dog and hedgehog. She also showed goats with Future Farmers of America and loved taking care of them. |
As member of the Choctaw Tribe, she greatly loved her family. She spent time with them every day and loved watching her brother’s baseball games at Tushka High School. As Morgan got older, her Cystic Fibrosis continued to take over her body, which caused rejection of her lungs. She was relisted for another transplant and when Morgan was thirteen years of age, received a second set of lungs. She was so grateful for this gift of life. As she grew in age and maturity, Morgan never forgot to honor her donors, praising them and keeping them in her heart. She would often gather her family together to participate in memorial runs to honor the heroes who gave her the gift of life. While Morgan persevered through all her trials, Cystic Fibrosis kept her sick. Despite being sick, she still insisted on going to school – even if it were only for a couple of hours. She had plenty of reason to want to give up, but she never allowed it to be an option for her. Eventually, Morgan ended up in the hospital with lung complications from her illness, which eventually ended her life. As fate would have it, after Morgan’s death, she was able to become a donor as well, donating her corneas and heart valves, saving others’ lives in the same way that her life was saved. |
“We are thankful to have the opportunity to honor Morgan and her family, at the Rose Parade this year as they represent the lifesaving gifts of donation,” said Jeffrey Orlowski, President and Chief Executive Officer of LifeShare of Oklahoma. “With a worldwide audience in the hundreds of millions, Morgan will not only be representing the importance of donation, but she will also serve as a representative of Oklahoma and the approximately 600 citizens of the state who are waiting on a lifesaving transplant.”
LifeShare encourages everyone across the state to tune-in to watch the 134th Rose Parade on New Year’s Day.
LifeShare encourages everyone across the state to tune-in to watch the 134th Rose Parade on New Year’s Day.