DMV Team Member’s Husband Honored on 2024 Rose Parade Float for Giving Gift of Sight

Contact: Office of Public Affairs
2415 First Avenue
Sacramento, CA 95818
(916) 657–6437 | dmvpublicaffairs@dmv.ca.gov

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 6, 2023

Sacramento – The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), in partnership with Donate Life California, today introduced DMV team member Kathy Sublett of Woodland, who will represent her husband, Ronald Sublett Jr., at the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena on January 1. Sublett’s husband, who also worked for the DMV, passed away in 2019 and donated his corneas, giving the gift of sight.

“The DMV is proud to partner with Donate Life to help save lives. It is a privilege to honor our team member’s husband who gave the gift of sight,” said DMV Chief Deputy Director Ed Swenson. “The DMV encourages all Californians to consider signing up for organ, eye and tissue donation. Signing up only takes a few moments and could positively change someone’s life forever.”

Sublett Jr. was honored with a floral portrait, known as a floragraph, during a special unveiling ceremony at the DMV headquarters in Sacramento. His floragraph will be highlighted on the Donate Life’s float titled “Woven Together,” which celebrates the power of organ, eye and tissue donation.

“My husband was funny, thoughtful and helpful,” shared Kathy Sublett, who works at the DMV’s Sacramento headquarters. “He was always willing to help anyone at the DMV who needed assistance, and he did not hesitate to have the Donate Life ‘pink dot’ affixed to his driver’s license to indicate he was an organ, eye and tissue donor. I know he would have been pleased that he was able to help someone in need through the donation of his corneas. I hope his example inspires others to register as donors.”

The Donate Life Rose Parade float celebrates the power of organ, eye and tissue donation, with donors and recipients working together to support one another. This year’s float features a Butterfly Dancer wearing an intricate headdress. The Hopi Butterfly Dance is a two-day, ceremonial, social dance for young people in Hopi villages during late summer and early fall to celebrate the corn harvest. The dance pays homage to the butterflies that pollinate the corn, helping the crop prosper. Memorial floragraphs honoring organ, eye and tissue donors will be displayed on the baskets. Transplant recipients will ride on the float and living donors will walk alongside it.

Jim Martin, CEO of Donate Life California, said, “By sharing the stories of people like Ronald, we hope to inspire more Californians to register as organ, eye and tissue donors, and help save and heal the lives of more than 100,000 people in the U.S. who are currently waiting for a lifesaving transplant.”

The DMV and Donate Life California have been partners since 2006. Since then, nearly 19 million Californians have signed up to save lives by registering as organ, eye and tissue donors – 95 percent of whom checked “YES” while at a DMV office. On average, 150 people are added to the nation’s organ transplant waiting list each day – one every 10 minutes. To learn more about how organ donors save lives, check Donate Life California’s FAQs on organ donation. To register to become an organ, eye and tissue donor, visit donatelifecalifornia.org.

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