Teenagers are desperately waiting for the moment when they have some independence. Driving is their first real taste of that freedom. So for many of our teenagers, they are anxiously looking forward to the day when they are eligible to get their license, even a temporary driving permit. At that precise moment, they are presented with a big question. “Do you want to become an organ donor?”
Becoming an Organ Donor
Driving a car is a huge responsibility, but that moment comes with an opportunity: the possibility of saving the life of someone else. When teenagers get their temporary driving permit, driver’s license, or even a state identification card, teens will be asked if they want to become an organ donor, eye, and tissue donor.
It’s one of the first adult decisions of their life. And that decision might just save a life. The question is presented as an easy question. We know that thinking about what would happen if we die is anything but easy. Yet, choosing to become an organ donor can potentially save and heal up to 50 lives. Though your teens will most likely live well into old age, checking “Yes” to organ and tissue donation might someday give someone a second chance at life.
It takes nothing more than a simple, “Yes.”
Remember, anyone under the age of 18 can choose to become an organ donor when asked at the BMV. However, if something would happen to someone under the age of 18, a parent can revoke that decision. So, it’s important that you and your teens seriously consider and discuss the question of organ donation now. When the time comes for your teen to make this decision, he or she just might leave the DMV with more than a license. Deciding to become an organ donor is a big decision and helps increase teens’ sense of agency and responsibility.
