MEDIA ALERT & PHOTO OPPORTUNITY

Paul Sciullo in 2015 Rose Parade

-Floragraph Decorating Event to Take Place Dec. 9 at CORE-

WHO: The Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE)

WHAT: CORE is sponsoring a memorial floragraph portrait of a tissue donor who will appear on Donate Life’s float during the 2015 Rose Parade.  On. Dec. 9, the family of Paul Sciullo, former Pittsburgh Police officer who was killed in the line of duty in 2009, will put the finishing touches on his floragraph at a dedication event. The resulting floragraph portrait will adorn the float to commemorate Sciullo’s life-enhancing gift.

WHEN: Tuesday, December 9, 2014 – 12 p.m. Hors d’Oeuvres, 1 p.m. program

 WHERE: CORE
204 Sigma Drive (RIDC Park)
Pittsburgh, PA 15238

DETAILS: The program will include remarks from CORE, Sgt. Chuck Henderson of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, Kevin Acklin, chief of staff, Office of Mayor William Peduto; and the Sciullo family of Bloomfield.

JoAnne Burka, living kidney donor of Charleston, WV, will also be in attendance. She is serving as a Donate Life float walker during the Rose Parade alongside 12 other living donors.

Additionally, Allegheny Health Network hospital leaders will sign dedication messages for rose vials that will be placed in the Dedication Garden on the Donate Life float in the parade.

PHOTOS & INTERVIEWS:  Susan Stuart, president and CEO of CORE; Max and Sue Sciullo, parents of Paul Sciullo; JoAnne Burka, living donor and float walker. Paul Sciullo’s floragraph will also be on display.

EDITORS/REPORTERS:  To RSVP your attendance, please contact Elizabeth Bacheson at 412-642-7700 or elizabeth.bacheson@elias-savion.com.

 About CORE
The Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE) is one of 58 federally designated not-for-profit organ procurement organizations (OPOs) in the United States.  CORE works closely with donor families and designated health care professionals to coordinate the surgical recovery of organs, tissues and corneas for transplantation.  CORE also facilitates the computerized matching of donated organs and placement of corneas.  With headquarters in Pittsburgh and an office in Charleston, West Virginia, CORE oversees a region that encompasses 155 hospitals and almost six million people throughout western Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Chemung County, NY.  For more information, visit www.core.org or call 1-800-DONORS-7.