Causes: Health, Organ & Tissue Banks

Mission: Gift of life is a national model for the support, awareness and success of organ, eye and tissue donation through education, mentoring and collaboration with partners and individuals in the transplant community.

Programs: Through gift of life's life savers program, classroom educators provide in-classroom presentations each year to more than 30,000 high school students and families in 114 high schools in the greater kansas city metropolitan area and surrounding counties. Program speakers are transplant recipients or have a connection to a transplant story. These presentations are provided free of charge, and inform students about the life-saving importance of organ, eye and tissue donation, and empower them to have a conversation with a loved one about their decision. Because of these powerful presentations, 45% of students follow through with a family discussion. More individuals join the state donor registry in counties with schools that have consistently participated in the life savers program than in those that have not. Gift of life's life savers program has contributed to the greater kansas city area having one of the highest enrollment percentages in its donor registry at almost 80% (compared to a national average of 50%).

gift of life's transplant mentors are trained volunteers who offer encouragement and support to those waiting for a transplant, new transplant recipients and their families. Referrals to the program come from the medical transplant teams at children's mercy hospital, the university of kansas health system, st. Luke's health system, and research medical center. Since program inception in 2009, trained transplant mentors have been provided to 575 patients and families from 23 states, including living donors and caregivers. Fifty-eight area transplant patients were mentored in 2017.Gift of life also provides online resources for transplant patients and their families at www. Giftdonor. Org.