The Unspoken | Ep 14 | A Mile High Hope, Denver 2026

Most people don’t realize that the upcoming 2026 Transplant Games in Denver will be the largest celebration of life in the world — and you can be part of it. When Mark McIntosh shares his journey from battling a rare blood cancer to receiving a life-saving kidney transplant, he reveals the extraordinary power of organ donation and the life-changing impact of community support.

This episode dives deep into the incredible story of resilience, hope, and giving back. Mark shares how a simple act — sharing your spare — saved his life and how the Transplant Games foster an inspiring environment where thousands come together to celebrate life, connect across communities, and promote organ donation awareness. He highlights the importance of trusting healthcare, Colorado’s pioneering transplant history, and the need to increase awareness among communities of color. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:07

Hey everyone, welcome back to the Unspoken Podcast. My name is Anna Morgan Pelody. I'm going to be your host today from the Chris Klug Foundation. First, I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has tuned in to this podcast last year and the first two episodes of this year. We are incredibly grateful to have such great support. If you haven't already hit the subscribe or follow button depending on where you like to listen, please do so. It helps us keep this podcast going and bring on new and interesting, exciting guests to talk about various different topics that are not discussed enough surrounding transplant and donation. With that, uh today's guest, I'm really excited to have Mark McIntosh from the Denver Transplant Games Host Committee. He is the chair of the host committee joining me to discuss everything in the lead up to the games and how excited we are to bring those games to Denver this June 18th through the 23rd. If you haven't already checked out the Transplant Games of America, please do so. It's such a wonderful event that brings together individuals from all around the country with a connection to transplant and donation. And it's a really special week. So make sure you do that. Before we dive into the conversation with Mark, I'd love to just kind of touch about what CKF has coming up. First off, the next episode of The Unspoken, we will be announcing our CKF 2026 award winners. So if you have submitted a nomination or just want to learn a little more about our wonderful winners from last year and learn who this year's will be, please stay tuned or tune in to that episode. I also want to apologize that this one is coming out a little later. We had um some technical difficulties during editing. As everyone knows, you know, technology doesn't run all that smoothly. Next, I save the date for Wine and Dine. Wine and Dine will be back on August 28th. If you can join us, we would love to see you at the Snow Mask Club to celebrate the gift of life and our 2026 CKF Award winners. It is Donate Life Month, and I can't believe I waited this long in this podcast to say happy Donate Life Month. Um, but I'm sure just like you, I'm having a whirlwind of a month. So it's always craziness, but we love celebrating the gift of life and honoring those who decided to save lives this month. If you are interested, we are running our Spirit Week campaign through the month of April, helping schools, communities, and colleges put on their own spirit week. So we will provide materials for a tabling event, for a sports game, for trivia or bingo or anything else really that your heart can uh come up with to help raise awareness for organized tissue donation. If you're interested in that, head to our website, ChrisClueFoundation.org slash donate life month. Now, without further ado, let's dive into the conversation with Mark. First, okay, so I want to start with your story. You know, what led you to be here today bringing the games to Denver? What, you know, what's your backstory for anyone that hasn't heard it?

SPEAKER_00 3:16

Well, you know, I've been in Denver almost 40 years. I came here as a sportscaster for Channel Four long time ago. And so I've been in the TV business full-time. I was in it for about 25 years, but I've been in it in some way. But uh, once they kick old old guys off the air, and uh you got to move on to something else. And so I started a little nonprofit called Victory Productions. It's really my ministry. And there's three programs. One, a stronger chord. We work with the Denver Rescue Mission. They're guys in their new life program, Irv Brown Scholarship Fund at MSU Denver, here in Denver. I'm I'm the chair. We give away scholarships to first generation kids in honor of Irv Brown, who was one of my mentors in the sports casting business. And then, based upon my life experience of the last three years, drive for five. And drive for five is an effort to recruit 5,000 live organs and keep 5,000 people from having to go on dialysis. Why do I care about that? Well, about three years ago, I was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer, incurable blood cancer, called amyloidosis. Took me about six months to learn how to pronounce it, that it's it's nasty stuff. There's only about 100,000 people on the planet with amyloidosis, and uh it was destroying my kidneys and after my liver as well. But I was immediately thrown in. About this time, three years ago, I started uh chemotherapy for the blood cancer and dialysis because it was destroying my kidneys. And so through that process of sitting there three times a day, or excuse me, three times a week for four hours a day, uh, I started digging in and realized these smokes, Batman. We have got a growing kidney crisis in our country with a hundred thousand people looking for kidney transplants. You know, 85% of all the people on a transplant list are for kidneys. It's a big elephant in the room. And um, so I just started writing about it and talking about it because I'm a you know, that's my world. I'm a communicator. You know, I write, I speak, I do all that kind of stuff. And and so I just became very passionate about educating people about organ donation and wellness, and especially how unfortunately high blood pressure diabetes and excessive weight are horrible for your organs and disproportionately affect communities of color and all that. And that drew the attention of the Transplant Life Foundation based out of Grand Rapids, Michigan. They are the presenters of the transplant games, and they were looking for a place to host the 2026, and they approached me, and I started thinking about it. All right, it's the world's largest celebration of life in the world. We're bringing 12,000 people June 18th to the 23rd. And it's my story. I'm a storyteller, and then also thought 12,000 people come into town. That's pretty cool. It's the kickoff of the Colorado caravan's efforts to like work with Chris Klug and others to over the next 10 years, let's restore Colorado as the healthiest state in the country. And in terms of transplants, we have history on our side. Back in 1963, Miss Starzel performed the first liver transplant in the world at what is now UC Health. All those things said, let's go. So proud to be hosted and darn proud that uh you're part of our team, and Chris Klug's definitely supporting us. So that was a real long answer to a very short question.

SPEAKER_01 6:34

I love it. That was wonderful. Thank you. And when did you get your transplant? I think you skipped over the part that you did get your transplant. You're no longer doing dialysis.

SPEAKER_00 6:45

I just need to shut up and answer questions. I got my uh kidney transplant on June 12th, 2024. A 68-year-old woman by the name of Kathy Hitchcock lives down in Pueblo West. She shared her spare and saved my life. She will forever be an angel in my midst. I'm uh, you know, I'm talking to you today, and we're doing the work that we love to do in this space. Without Kathy Hitchcock and wonderful healthcare, I ain't here.

SPEAKER_01 7:15

It's incredible. And it's always incredible to me when older individuals are able to donate. You know, we had a guy come up to us who is running the New York Marathon who was in his 70s and was going in to donate his kidney in a couple weeks' time and has since donated and is doing wonderfully. And it always amazes me the healthcare system.

SPEAKER_00 7:34

Well, that's been one of the things. So, you know, we created the Colorado Caravan and I'm traveling wherever invited to educate. And I want to thank you for the Western Slope tour. I look forward to the next one. That people are actually their jaws drop. You know, when you're out in front of people and you see who's engaged, who doesn't care, and all that kind of stuff. But when people hear about 73-year-old people sharing their spare, I just had a buddy at 69. My donor was 68, and just really try to encourage these people, just get tested.

SPEAKER_01 8:06

Yep.

SPEAKER_00 8:07

Because you never know. And I think a lot of people don't realize that. And so, you know, one of the big things for the caravan as we move forward after these games are over, the caravan is gonna continue on, you know, and just to try to encourage people that are beyond child rearing years, you've been pretty healthy, you believe in giving back to your community, and you're looking around the crazy world in which we live and saying, What can I do to help? Well, how about share your spare and save somebody's life?

SPEAKER_01 8:37

I love it. I love it. It's so simple, so easy.

SPEAKER_00 8:40

Well, and just get tested, you know, just start the process because what I've noticed is well, first there's three things. One, it's free, it's a great checkup that even if you don't donate, you might discover an illness or disease you had no idea you had. And then if you go through with it, you get the voucher. So, you know, that it could help you or a loved one. But um, you know, it is pretty simple. And it seems like the more as we've been out, you know, the caravans out roaming around, and there's more and more people getting tested, and it's it's crazy. They'll text me, like, Mark, I I got through the you know, the blood work and now I'm onto this. It seems like the deeper they get into it, the more excited they get.

SPEAKER_01 9:20

Oh, definitely. It's a huge it's gotta be the most, you know, when you give a donation to a charity, you feel good afterwards. It's gotta be the ultimate to after you donate a kidney and save someone's life. There's got you know, it's there's gotta be no feeling like that.

SPEAKER_00 9:37

Or a liver. I mean a loba liver. You know, my my you know, amylodosis was after my liver. Thankfully, it didn't get my liver. Kidneys and livers, we can save a lot of lives in America if we just do a better job of educating people. You can live just fine with one kidney and you can give a loba your liver and it'll grow back.

SPEAKER_01 9:58

That's incredible. Incredible. So let's dive into these games now. What are the transplant games? What are we bringing to Denver? Why are we so excited about bringing these games and all of these transplant people into the Mile High City?

SPEAKER_00 10:11

Well, the games have been around since 1990. They were started by the National Kidney Foundation. And uh after the 2010, they kind of realized uh our specialty is not running six-day sports and wellness festivals. So they turned it over to the Transplant Life Foundation that's run by Bill Ryan. And uh, so the Transplant Life Foundation has been running the game since uh 2011. And it's six days of all kinds, 21 different competitions for the three divisions: recipients, donors, family members of deceased donors. We compete for gold, silver, and bronze and 21 different events. There's eight events that are open to anybody, whether you have an affiliation to the transplant world or not. That's called the Colorado Challenge. But we just for six days, we come together and we celebrate life. We honor those making it happen. We educate about organ donation and we inspire people uh to get in a little better shape. There's all there's like 65 different events or special events like a donor tribute and a quarter century club dinner, where people that have uh lived 25 years or longer with a transplant, it's just a big old party. I mean, it's it's just a six-day celebration of life.

SPEAKER_01 11:28

How can you not get behind that?

SPEAKER_00 11:30

Well, exactly, you know, and I think especially in the days we live in, um, and you know this from your own personal experience in the transplant world, there's a special spirit to people that like when I'm with Kathy Hitchcock and we're just standing together and people go, Mark, who gave you a kidney? This lady right here, you know, and just to realize that yeah, yeah, I was pointing to my groin there, but that's where my third kidney sits. But yeah, so we're just inviting, you know, we need some good news in our country these days. You know, there's a lot of crazy stuff going on. So we just encourage everybody that's listening to this, come join us. You can volunteer, you can compete, and you could support us if you don't join us. But it's the you know, the people I talk to, and you you've been. Um some of these people they have tears strolling down their cheeks, and they go, Mar, it's the most inspirational thing I've ever been a part of. It really is. Yeah. And so we're very blessed that we're hosting it in Denver. And uh, you know, Denver's kind of on the comeback trail. We just read christened 16th Street, and we're really looking forward to hosting everybody. But for us out here, we're just getting started. This is the springboard to a 10-year effort. And a big part of that effort is uh starting soda chapters. We can talk about that if you want to. But uh yeah, well, because Chris Klug, you know very well about soda. So I'm just we're just thrilled that um, you know, we're gonna have a fun time this summer, and it's just a springboard of much more to come.

SPEAKER_01 13:01

Yeah. It's incredible. I'll top on that. I mean, I went to San Diego, and I mean it did. It left me speechless by the end of it because you're surrounded by individuals from different communities, different backgrounds, different races, ethnicities, religions, everything who have been put through the absolute ringer, who have every reason in that room to feel, you know, sad at the lot they were given. But they are not, they are so impassioned and so positive and inspirational and the conversations that you get to see had between people that probably would never cross paths. You know, somebody from Mississippi is chatting to somebody from Long Beach, Florida, you know, whatever it might be, that positivity and it's yeah, inspiring. It really is everything the Olympics is, but for people that really deserve that chance to be championed.

SPEAKER_00 13:54

Yeah, I mean, every time I hug Kathy Hitchcock, you realizing a piece of her sits inside of me. I am so blessed that there's a couple things I'm struggling with, though. And one is that I I suddenly like hallmark movies. And I have a I just suddenly I just like shopping for some reason.

SPEAKER_01 14:11

I They say that you pick up traits.

SPEAKER_00 14:13

I'm now a woman trapped in a man's body.

SPEAKER_01 14:17

Lasting legacy, I think that is, right? Just a little stamp on it.

SPEAKER_00 14:20

I love I I'm so blessed. I you know, I'm you know, again, Kathy Hitchcock and great healthcare. And you know, I think one of the challenges we have in this space, and Chris Klug's been in this space for 20 years, I'm a rookie, um, is you know, getting people to trust the healthcare system. And often, you know, we put off like I look back on my journey, I probably I probably knew because you know, I've always been pretty in tune with my body. I went to college on an athletic scholarship. Uh, you know, I was taught to be in tune with my body, but I probably for six months chalked it up to I'm just getting old as to why uh I was losing weight and I wasn't trying. I was going to the bathroom all the time, wasn't sleeping that well. There was a lot of foam in my urine. You know, I just said, I'm just getting old. Well, no, that was my body telling me your kidneys are failing because of the the amylosis and all that foam in my urine, that was flushing my proteins out of my body.

SPEAKER_01 15:20

Yeah. And that's the common trend you hear with a lot of transplant patients is that it did, you know, they were progressively getting sicker and not realizing, and it took them time to go in and face that fear of, you know, what are they gonna tell me when I walk into this room?

SPEAKER_00 15:38

And then it's too late.

SPEAKER_01 15:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 15:40

And yeah. And that one of the things we're really emphasizing on the on the caravan trail is the wellness piece. And uh, you know, because we just keep ignoring this stuff and it's just getting worse. We've got five hundred and fifty thousand people in America on dialysis today. It's projected to go to a million in the next decade. Because our lifestyles, high blood pressure, diabetes, and excessive weight, and especially is hitting communities of color. That's why we're real excited that we were trying to expand soda throughout the state, throughout the nation. And you can you could share with people what soda's all about.

SPEAKER_01 16:21

Yeah, so absolutely. So and and I wanted to kind of jump into this world of what the legacy of these Denver games is going to be compared, you know, added to what the legacy has been has been of previous games. You know, we're really trying to put a a stamp on leaving a legacy behind. And Soda is an incredible organization, student organ donor advocates, organ donation advocates that are set up in campuses all across the country, educating their peers. You know, we can go in and preach all day long, but it's way more powerful when it comes from someone of your age who you're friends with, and you know that this means something to them. Um, and this is an important thing in their world. And I think that they've really done an incredible job of activating young people about this mission and this cause that most people don't think affects them until they're older. You know, you don't think that you're gonna go through this as a young person, but unfortunately, a lot of people that are successful donors are young people and people that need transplants, you know, transplant does not discriminate. It's coming after you. If you need it, it doesn't care what age you are, you're gonna need it. And so they've done an incredible job of of encouraging people to register and making sure young people are educated.

SPEAKER_00 17:33

Yeah, and that's where we're really uh around. We've got only two soda chapters in the state of Colorado right now. One at CU Boulder and one that we just started at MSU Denver Metropolitan State University, Denver. Our goal, the Colorado Caravan goal, for the next five years, we want 25 chapters around the country around the state. And in 10 years, we want 50 chapters. And we're really going after colleges in parts of the state that uh the universities there tend to serve more kids of color. For instance, Fort Lewis and Durango, Colorado Mountain College all along the western slope, Colorado Mesa in Grand Junction, CSU Pueblo, Adams State, UNC, etc. So I think it's absolutely critical for our nation's future as we become more and more diverse. Our younger kids of color have got to understand the dangers of high blood pressure, diabetes, and excessive weight, because unfortunately they're more prone to that stuff, just genetically, and then distrust of the system, and then access to the system. And we gotta do something about that.

SPEAKER_01 18:44

Yeah. Yeah, and I believe it's 60% of the transplant wait list is is made up of those of color, communities of color, and only about 20% are registered to be donors. Well, you can donate to anyone. There is uh studies that do prove in certain terms that genetic and and race does make a difference for a longer-lasting transplant. So encouraging those communities of color to make sure that they are registered is so critical and just keeps growing.

SPEAKER_00 19:12

You know, I'll never forget that so I was on hemodialysis for nine months. And so every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday morning, you know, for four hours they'd hook you up, but you'd sit out in the lobby. You had to be there at like 455, waiting for the doors to open up. And there were seven of us Amber, Jackie, John, Elizabeth, Joyce, Maria, and Mark. We were strangers who became friends who became like family as we waited for that life-saving treatment three times a week. All of my friends were of color and poor, arriving via medicated, Medicaid-provided transportation. And here I was, pretty comfortable white guy. I'd pull up in my car, I'd go in, I'd get treated, I'd go home. And it just, I I've grown up around communities of color my whole life. As an athlete, they were my teammates, as a sports caster, they were my interviews, and then Victory Productions, a lot of the people we serve are of color. And so it just it breaks my heart, and I will go to my grave trying to make a difference.

SPEAKER_01 20:19

Thank you. You're doing incredible work, Mark. You really are.

SPEAKER_00 20:22

Well, I just all I do is I just I just do what you tell me to do.

SPEAKER_01 20:25

I don't know about that. That's your wife's job, isn't it? That's what wives do.

SPEAKER_00 20:30

You know, you're one of about four work wives I have that that just kind of when I'm outside of my wife's supervision, you guys take over.

SPEAKER_01 20:37

You ladies correct.

SPEAKER_00 20:41

But I I'm okay with that because I need I need supervision.

SPEAKER_01 20:44

Me too. So we have a lot of people coming to Denver, and I thought this would be a great time. You know, you're a local. What is your top place or top couple places that uh, you know, traveling people with different teams should go visit?

SPEAKER_00 21:00

Sure. Well, Red Rocks comes immediately to mind. You know, it's considered one of the most famous musical venues in the world, but you can go up there and you can hike all around Red Rocks, you can run up the steps and all that kind of stuff. So definitely Red Rocks, you know, the city of Denver, uh, the zoo is is pretty cool. The Museum of Nature and Science is right by the zoo. This is on the Near East Side. Uh, for those that are coming and going to be staying downtown, the zoo and the Museum of Nature and Science is like a 10-minute from downtown. It's right there. I mean, you got the mountains 30 minutes to the west, so you can do all kinds of hiking. The Rockies are gonna be in town. In fact, we're gonna have, I think on June 19th. So the games run from June 18th to the 23rd. That's Thursday through Tuesday. But Friday night, June 19th, we're gonna have a uh Transplant Games of America night at the Rockies. So we'd love to there'll be more information coming from TLF on that soon. But so The Rockies are in town, and for people from all around the nation, that you're used to going to baseball games in the summer, and it's hotter than hell and muggy and everything. An evening in the summertime at a baseball game at Coors Field is pretty pretty magical. Yeah. And uh I highly recommend get a seat over like down the right field line. You can watch the sunset over the mountains. You get that purple mountains majesty going. So you have a chance to, you know, check out Coors Field. And you know, there's this, and I don't visit Denver. I think Visit Denver is uh working with the TLF. So people that are signed up to come and everything, you're gonna start getting information about things to do while you're in Denver. And we obviously now I kind of feel like I'm being the cheerleader for the city of Denver. You got it. Pretty great city. I mean, you know, the games start on Thursday, June 18th, but come early and stay late. There's all kinds of stuff to do, and you know, head up to the mountains, obviously, mountains in the summertime. Well, yeah, yeah. I mean, there's a reason a lot of people come to Colorado in the summertime.

SPEAKER_01 23:12

I was always told when I when I moved out here, they always said to me, You'll come for the winter, you'll stay for the summer. And it could not be more true. I know I'm like, okay, winter's fine. The summer comes and I thrive.

SPEAKER_00 23:25

Yeah, it's a it's a special place. And we we know that there were some concerns with some people that uh holding the games at 5,280 feet of Rocky Mountain altitude for somebody that's had a double lung transplant or a heart transplant or something. We we understand that you know competing at altitude and even just coming and visiting, I just encourage everybody. The minute you get off that plane, drink water all the time. And obviously, transplant patients should be drinking water, all of us should be drinking more water.

SPEAKER_01 23:58

That's why every Colorado carries one of these wherever they go. See?

SPEAKER_00 24:03

There you go. Yeah, hydrate, but you know, 16th Street. Um, I think some of the state managers that came out in October, they're out for the reopening of 16th Street. Now, so I've lived in Denver for 40 years, and uh 16th Street Mall is what they used to call it, and it used to be the spine of downtown. And downtown Denver was very vibrant pre-COVID. And then once COVID hit, and like just almost like all major city downtowns are still trying to figure it out. But uh, and they thought one of the things we can do to kind of restart the resurgence of downtown is they kind of revamped the 16th Street Mall. They spent $100,000 on a marketing campaign. What are we gonna call what used to be called the 16th Street Mall? They came up with let's just call it 16th Street. So they took mall off of it. I think we could have probably done that for much 20 bucks in a beer at bucks at bucks and aspen.

SPEAKER_01 25:00

Right? That's kind of my hangout. And 16th Street is my hangout.

SPEAKER_00 25:05

So we trade out for everybody that's coming, most of everybody's gonna be staying downtown, and 16th Street's right there. Yeah, and then you got the Rockies are gonna be, and you never know. I don't think the Nuggets got a chance, but the Aves, the Avs might be in the middle of the Stanley Cup final. And the Colorado Rapids, I think it's Colorado, and we've got uh we've got the first season of uh National Women's Soccer League franchise, the Denver Summit, which is incredible. Yeah, a while ago. Denver is a great sports town to Colorado, and again, so we hope that people come for the games and uh you know slip up to the mountains for a few days and all that kind of stuff. But it's our it's our intention, you know, people that have lived here a long time and we want to put our best foot forward. Welcome to the Mile High City for the 2026 Transplant Games of America, folks.

SPEAKER_01 26:02

I love it. Okay, and as we wrap this up, Mark, I have one last question for you. We always leave off of listeners with one piece of advice. It could be for somebody who's awaiting a transplant, it could be for somebody who's just received their transplant. What's the one thing that you want to leave them with?

SPEAKER_00 26:19

Dang. You could have prepped me a little on this. One piece of advice. And my mind is going to, you know, I'll never forget when I was first diagnosed, you know, and and uh, because we didn't know what was going on and we did a kidney biopsy. My we knew my kidneys were failing. I've never had a problem with my kidneys in my life. Why is this guy's kidneys failing? And then we find out that I've got this rare blood cancer and everything. And there's I think it's Romans 12, 12, and it says, find joy and hope. And I knew from what my doctors were telling me that they've made tremendous strides against amyloid amyloidosis and and that you know they were confident that with chemo and and with dialysis that I'd get a second chance. So I I found, tried to find joy and hope that you know modern medicine was gonna keep my butt alive. Patience with affliction. I know it's very difficult to be sitting on a transplant list wondering when that call's gonna come. My donor, Kathy Hitchcock, she got tested to help her husband. They weren't a match, but Kathy and I were a match. Kirk still sits on the transplant list. So I know it's for people out there, I know it can get very, very frustrating, but I just encourage you to be patient with affliction. And for those who have received, like I did, be patient that, you know, it does take time. I'm what almost 21 months. Yeah, about 21 months into receiving a new lease on life from my angel in my midst, as I call Kathy Hitchcock. Um, and I'm almost back up to the weight I was. I I'd usually weighed it weighed in at 165 pounds, but I got down to 142 in the depths of my illness. So be patient with whether you're sitting on the list or you, you know, you're uh have the new lease, be patient. It takes it takes a bit. And I know it's real easy for me to say, but I know for people that are sitting in, uh, you know, so find joy and hope, and affliction, faith and prayer. I think just believe for those sitting on the list, trust me, you've got Chris Klug Foundation, you've got Drive for Five, you've got a lot of people out there educating people that you can share your spare and save somebody's life. So don't feel like you're alone here. We are advocating each and every day, you know, to help you. So just keep the faith. And then for those that we've received, go out there and encourage others to share their spare and save somebody's life. So one piece, you know, I so you know, keep the faith, hang in there, be patient, and just believe the posse's coming.

SPEAKER_01 29:06

We got your back. There's a lot of us.

SPEAKER_00 29:09

Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 29:10

Yeah. Yeah. There's it's it always amazes me. Every room you go into, there is someone with a connection sitting in that room that they don't half the time don't even know that they had a connection. But then they think, oh, my aunt Gwen had a you know liver transplant 30 years ago. Uh yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 29:27

And so I I guess before we wrap up, I I'd be remiss, you know, people that are kind of being my coach and trying to raise money for this and all that goes. I can tell us, you gotta ask. You know, I get to talking about it, get all excited about it. And they go, you never ask anybody for anything. You know, so we we would just like to encourage everybody, you know, come visit us, sign up to volunteer. Obviously, sign up to compete. You know, if you can't make it and you'd like to support us, you can go to Transplant Games of America for all this. Transplant Games of America. You can volunteer, you can compete, you can support us. And so, but we would really love to see you out here. We're gonna have a good time this summer.

SPEAKER_01 30:10

Yep, let's celebrate the gift of life. Like Mark said, head to Transplant Life, uh, TransplantGamesof America.org to register, to volunteer, to make a financial contribution if you feel so inclined. Uh, we are out spreading the message, and these games are gonna last on past Denver 2026.

SPEAKER_00 30:29

Well, yeah, the games will go on, and I guarantee you the effort here in Colorado that Chris Klug has been doing all over the nation. But Chris Klug was born here 20 years ago, the American Transplant Foundation was born 20 years ago, and Drive for Five has been around for a couple years now, and Donor Alliance out here. We will work tirelessly to continue to educate people about organ donation and wellness.

SPEAKER_01 30:54

Well, thank you so much, Mark, for joining me. Thank you to everyone who's tuned in. And as we always like to leave it off with, live life, give life.