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The Lifesharing Promise
Saving lives and healing hearts through organ and tissue donation
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Generous San Diegans help us save lives
Who we are
We are the nonprofit organ procurement organization (OPO) serving San Diego and Imperial counties in Southern California.
What we do
We are privileged to coordinate organ and tissue donation at the end of life and provide compassionate support to grieving families.
How we save lives
We identify deceased patients who have the potential to become organ donors – then we find matching recipients on the transplant waiting list. We also recover tissues for transplantation and operate a licensed tissue bank.
ABOUT ORGAN DONATION
What our families say
Organ donation has given me hope.  It has given my dad’s life more meaning because his story didn’t end that day.
Monique Pascucci, pictured with sister Nadia Powell
Daughters of San Diego Fire-Rescue Capt. Robin Cervantes
You might not be here if it hadn’t been for Peyton.
Nigel Nurse, Captain, US Navy, Retired
Holding the baby of his son’s heart recipient
As a mom, I’m so thankful for that precious gift they gave my son.
Valerie James
Mother of kidney recipient Xavier McLeod
She is an organ and tissue donor and we are so proud of that legacy for her.
Michelle Herrera
Mother of Lifesharing organ donor Sara Michelle Herrera
Our families come first
We help transplant hundreds of vital organs every year, including hearts, lungs, livers and kidneys. Each organ is a gift from a donor in the San Diego region, and we provide support to the families of these heroes.
Personal guidance and compassionate care
Our family services team explains the donation process and empowers families to make informed decisions.
process overview
Connecting donor families with recipients
We facilitate letter exchanges between the families of our organ donors and the transplant recipients who received their loved one’s organs. We also help facilitate meetings between families.
After-care support
and services
Our relationship with families does not end with donation. We offer an after-care program for families and provide them with opportunities to honor their loved ones.
Know the facts
Some people are afraid to register as organ donors, fearing that doctors won’t try to save their lives in an emergency. But the opposite is true – you can only become a Lifesharing organ donor if you die in a hospital after receiving a high level of medical care. This critical care helps to keep organs viable for transplantation.
You can have an open-casket funeral after donation, if you wish. You can also choose cremation if you wish, and have the donor’s ashes returned to loved ones.
Lifesharing pays all donation-related costs for its donors. (Note: families are still responsible for paying funeral and burial costs for their loved ones.)
Organ and tissue donation cannot happen unless the patient is a registered donor, or their family or legal decision-maker has authorized it.
Ready to help?
become a donor
Josiah listens to his late father’s heart beating inside the transplant recipient.
Daniela Castro and her daughter Fernanda Moreno Silva form a heart with their hands and place it over her new kidney – a gift from Lifesharing organ donor Gavin Raceles.
California has more people on the transplant waiting list than any other state
Approximately 80% of California patients on the transplant waiting list come from multicultural communities
Latino patients alone make up almost 50% of California’s waiting list
For some patients on the transplant waiting list, the best organ match will come from an organ donor who shares their same ethnicity
Our vision is to create a world where everyone who needs a transplant can receive one. We are committed to supporting families through the organ donation process and honoring the memory of their loved ones who have given the gift of life.
Our teams
Providing expert guidance and compassionate support throughout your donation journey.
Barbara Vaughn, Family Services Specialist (left)
Leslie Nurse, mother of organ donor Peyton Nurse
Family Services
These specialists work with families in the wake of their loved one’s death, offering opportunities for organ and tissue donation. Our advocates provide on-site emotional support for families during the organ donation process.
Billy Snyder, Manager of Surgical Services
Clinical Operations
We have one of the most highly skilled organ teams in the nation – including doctors, nurses and surgical coordinators. Our nurses are experts in critical care – they play an important role in keeping organs viable for transplant and identifying matching recipients.
Mireya Tabor, Tissue Recovery Tech
Tissue Services
These skilled technicians work day and night to coordinate the donation and recovery of human tissue for transplantation. Skin can heal burn victims, tendons can rebuild joints and heart valves can save lives. A single tissue donor can help 100 people or more.
Dr. Mita Shah, Lifesharing Medical Director
Leadership and Administrative Services
Our leadership team is made up of visionaries, innovators and trailblazers who have been on the forefront of the nation’s organ donation system for decades. For us, this isn’t a job – it’s a calling. Lifesharing is consistently ranked in the top-tier of organ procurement organizations (OPOs) across the nation.
Matt Kidder, Hospital Services Manager
Hospital Services
Organ donation must take place in a hospital or clinical setting, so we partner with every single medical center and health system in San Diego and Imperial counties. Our team educates frontline hospital staff and provides onsite support for all active cases.
Gwennie Mai, Tissue Quality Supervisor
Quality Assurance (QA) and Regulatory Compliance
We are relentless in our pursuit of excellence. We review each and every single donor case to ensure compliance with state and federal regulations. We have a robust performance improvement program, too.
Samantha Blaz, Director of Donor Development and Strategic Partnerships (left)
Anne State, PR Director
Public Outreach
Our award-winning outreach programs and Emmy award-winning films help educate the public about organ donation. And our volunteers educate more than 10,000 local students each year with inspiring classroom presentations and compelling personal stories.
Our latest news, stories and events
News
06.2025
Lifesharing’s Executive Director selected for national role
Lifesharing Executive Director Jeff Trageser, MSN, CPTC, is adding a new title to his name: President of the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO)
News
01.2025
Lifesharing helps transplant a record number of organs in 2024
News
11.2024
Float honoring Lifesharing organ donor wins Extraordinaire Award in 2025 Rose Parade
Test your knowledge
Organ donation and transplantation is a unique field of medicine. Take our quiz to test your knowledge
Less than 1% of the population will die in a way that allows for organ donation
Sadly, most of us will not die in a way that allows for organ donation.
This has led to a severe shortage of organs for transplantation.
Which organ has the longest waiting list?
The vast majority of patients on the transplant waiting list need a kidney. That’s because of the prevalence of kidney disease and the number of patients on dialysis.
Is there an official age limit for organ donation?
There is no official age limit for organ donation, although many transplant centers will not accept organs from donors over the age of 80. Bottom line? Do not rule yourself out! Lifesharing has coordinated tissue donation for 100-year-old patients in the past.
Do you have to be completely healthy to be an organ donor?
Lifesharing screens all potential donors for disease, but you don’t have to be in perfect health to be an organ donor at the end of life. We routinely transplant organs from donors with pre-existing medical conditions, as long as the organs have the potential to save lives.
Organs are matched according to blood type, size and geographic location of the donor and recipients.
Lifesharing uses a national database to match organ donors and recipients. The database prioritizes the sickest patients and matches them to organ donors within a specific geographic area, depending on the organ that’s needed. (Some organs can travel further than others.)
Organ donation groups like Lifesharing are not allowed to declare death for organ donors.
No one from the organ donation or transplant teams can declare death for an organ donor. Death must be declared by a clinician at the hospital where the patient is being treated – and that clinician cannot be involved in organ donation in any way.