Pedal for Life, a group of eight cyclists whose sole objective is to raise awareness for organ and tissue donation, will be in Oxford Friday.

The riders departed from Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City on Sunday and are bicycling to the National Donate Life conference in New Orleans on Oct. 22. The team will cover the 11,500-mile journey in 12 days, spreading awareness of the shortage of registered donors across seven states.

Oxford will have a special reception for them at 4 p.m. Friday at Baptist Memorial Hospital–North Mississippi in the courtyard at the front entrance of the hospital. Guests will include Jonde Zinzer, of New Albany, whose son Jagger was a donor, and Sandra Hipp, of Oxford, whose son Steve was a donor.

“Baptist North Mississippi is delighted to host Pedal for Life as they work to spread awareness about organ and tissue donation,” said Peyton Warrington, Baptist North Mississippi assistant administrator. “This life-changing decision makes an impacts on countless lives.”

Pedal for Life was started by Brock Brockaway to honor his son Garretts’ gift as an organ and tissue donor as a result of his death at age 10 on Feb. 24, 2013.

A couple of local donor families also will be honored:

On Dec, 1, 2014, Jagger Zinzer became an organ donor. Jonde, his mother, said, “We know God gave us Jagger because he needed him to help save others.”

Jagger was only an infant when he was laid down for a nap and stopped breathing. Even in the midst of their grief the family decided Jagger could still help others as a donor. The family continues to celebrate Jagger’s life by raising awareness of donation.

In 2000, Steve Hipp, became a donor as a result of an automobile accident. He graduated in the top 10 of his class at Lafayette High School in 1999 in Oxford; was an Eagle Scout and the recipient of the Tollison Scholarship.

In Mississippi, 560 people are currently waiting for life-saving transplants.