Kingswood Oxford students are organizing the car event to support organ donation.

Submitted by Jackie Pisani, Kingswood Oxford School

Inspired by first-hand experience, Kingswood Oxford student John McLaughlin ’20 has organized a car show to raise money for Donate Life, an organization whose mission is to increase the number of donated organs, eyes, and tissues available to save and heal lives.

In 2013, McLaughlin’s father received a living kidney from a relative and made a full recovery from total kidney failure. McLaughlin is paying it forward as he raises awareness regarding the donor organ shortage.

“Beyond just raising money, our goal is to use interesting and collector cars to bring attention to the ongoing donor organ shortage,” said McLaughlin. “According to Donate Life America, in the United States the organ donation waitlist contains more than 110,000 people. Currently, the best way to combat this shortage is by registering new donors, but the decision to register is often clouded by misinformation about the risks and benefits. We would like to help clear up these misconceptions and encourage more people to register: one donor may change more than 50 lives for the better.”

KO Car Club’s event, KO Cars and Coffee, will be held on Saturday, Sept. 14 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. All show cars must be registered online at bit.ly/REGISTERFORKOCC by Sept. 4.  There is a $20 fee to register a car.

All proceeds go to Donate Life Connecticut. Spectators enter free. The event will be held on the Kingswood Oxford campus: 170 Kingswood Rd., West Hartford.

The lineup of cars on display includes classics, sports cars, muscle cars, exotics, and hypercars. Hoffman Auto Group will be in attendance and is a sponsor.

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