A young woman who has helped tell Canadians about the importance of organ donation was honoured by Lt.-Gov David Onley on Friday.
Onley presented Helene Campbell, 20, with the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Volunteerism.
Campbell has a degenerative lung disease, which left her lungs at about 20 per cent capacity. She has to be on oxygen in order to breath.
The Ottawa woman is currently living in Toronto, where she is waiting for a donor match to have a double-lung transplant.
While she waits, Campbell is spreading the word about organ donation through an online campaign.
She has some big supporters. Ellen DeGeneres surprised Campbell by putting her live on the show via Skype.
Campbell also got a re-tweet from Justin Bieber, who sent a message promoting organ donation to his 16 million followers.
"I'm just a regular girl and this is just a miracle, how far this has all gone," Campbell said on Friday when she was presented with the award.
Campbell said she was honoured by the show of support.
"This means so much to me, not just to me, but everyone out there, waiting and, you know, who has lost someone. It gives hope," she said.
The award from the lieutenant governor was the second big honour for Campbell on Friday.
In Ottawa, the city proclaimed March 30 Helene Campbell Day and hundreds marched from City Hall to Parliament Hill to spread the message about organ donation.
Toronto has one of the lowest organ donation registration rates in the country, with only 12 per cent of people in the city registered to donate.
About 250 people die in Canada every year while waiting for an organ transplant.
With files from CTV Toronto's Paul Bliss
