5th Annual Clay Jones Memorial
24-Hour Relay Challenge
Clay was a fun-loving, gregarious sort of person that was, as one person said, "a people collector." Clay realized that there was more to a person than just a face or name - that there was a heart on the other side. If that is unique, then he was unique. Clay impacted people's lives - from family and friends to total strangers. He still reaches people. Clay was an honor student and an athlete. He was involved in track, football and basketball. He was passionate about sports. Clay was 16 years old when he was struck by lightning on the Forney High School practice field. Four days later, Clay died at Baylor Medical Center. It was just a few months earlier that Clay had signed his organ donor card. He gave his kidneys, corneas, bone and tissue grafts to help others. Nothing about his name being associated with an event such as this would come as a surprise. For you see, helping others was natural for Clay, for even in his death, he gave others life through the selfless gift of organ donation. "He still reaches people."
The question on the application read, "Are you interested in becoming an organ donor? For a young man named Clay Jones, his answer was "I don't see why anyone would not want to become an organ donor". Due to his single commitment, Clay has provided a higher quality of life for the recipients of his corneas, kidneys, bone, and tissue grafts. The Clay Jones 24-Hour Relay Challenge and the Southwest Organ and Tissue Bank join forces during the relay weekend to celebrate the gift of life that Clay, and many other organ donors, have provided to individuals who are in need of these most precious of gifts. Several organ recipients visit the relay to share their unique stories, and heighten the awareness and the importance of organ donation. Our beloved Clay's time on this earth was too short, but his generosity will effect the lifetimes of many other loved individuals.