Lifesharing

08/20/2025

Our Executive Director Jeff Trageser is recognized again for his role at the national level…. PROUD MOMENT FOR US!

AOPO President’s Address: Meet the Moment Aug 20, 2025 | 50K Organ Transplants Campaign, Achievement, AOPO, Leadership AOPO President’s Address: Meet the Moment With gratitude, a powerful call to action, and a vision for the future, Jeff Trageser stepped into his role as AOPO President at the 20...

08/15/2025

SHOWING OUR SUPPORT FOR THE 1st PLACE SAN DIEGO PADRES on this Casual Friday! Lifesharing Family Services Director Wendy Garrison and Executive Director Jeff Trageser are sporting their baseball jerseys in honor of the team that’s been our longtime partner in promoting organ and tissue donation. Petco Park has played host to many “Donate Life Nights” in the past and we’ll be rooting for the Friars as they prepare to take on the Dodgers in LA. As you no doubt have heard, the Padres are now in first place in the National League West.

08/11/2025

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL... THANKS TO AN ORGAN DONOR 💙💚 Students at returned to class today and we thought we’d take this opportunity to reshare one of our posts from 2019. The post celebrated the first day of school for kidney recipient Xavier McLeod. On that day six years ago, Xavier’s mom - Valerie James - wrote a beautiful tribute to the Lifesharing organ donor who saved her son’s life, Sam McCrow. Valerie wrote: “Can’t believe I have a 10th grader!! As I laid hands on him this morning and prayed for this school year and the teachers, I couldn’t forget to thank Sam and his family for Xavier’s second chance at life. Without his kidney transplant at the age of three, our lives could have been quite different. Because of organ donation we get to experience another first day of school! Love you Sam” 💙💚
Just a couple of years after that post, Xavier graduated from Mt. Miguel High School and got his first big job. In 2023, he rode the OneLegacy Donate Life Rose Parade float in celebration of organ donation and transplantation.
Thank you, Xavier and Valerie, for letting us share your story!
chance

08/07/2025

THIS IS IMPORTANT…. August is National Multicultural Donor Awareness Month. California has more people on the transplant waiting list than any other state. The vast majority of these patients — 81% — are from multicultural communities. (Latino patients alone account for almost 50% of the waitlist in California.) For some of these patients, the best organ match will come from a donor who shares the same ethnicity.
A more diverse donor registry can potentially help us save even more lives.
For more info on how to register as an organ and tissue donor in California: https://www.lifesharing.org/become-a-donor/
Lifesharing is the organ procurement organization (OPO) serving San Diego and Imperial counties in Southern California; We coordinate organ and tissue donation at the end of life.
Lifesharing follows strict rules and regulations that govern the recovery of organs from deceased donors. Organ recovery cannot take place until all lifesaving measures have been exhausted and the hospital has declared death for the patient.

07/11/2025

IT’S OFFICIAL! Lifesharing Executive Director Jeff Trageser is formally announced as President of the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations - AOPO. He will continue to lead Lifesharing as he embarks on this new national role. CONGRATS, JEFF!

AOPO Introduces 2025-26 President and Newly Elected Board Leadership Jul 10, 2025 | Achievement, AOPO, Healthcare Industry, Leadership, News, OPO, Press Release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEContact Information:Jenny Daigle | jdaigle@aopo.org AOPO Introduces 2025-26 President and Newly Elected Board Leadersh...

06/28/2025

TODAY IS THE BIRTHDAY of Baby Ava, one of Lifesharing’s tissue donor heroes. Her mother has written a poignant letter in memory of her daughter, which she has given us permission to share here….
“HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO OUR TINY HERO IN HEAVEN ❤
Dear Ava,

Seven years ago today, you came into this world at 12:21 am. Born 7.03 lbs. and 19 inches long, you were the smallest baby of three. You were my beautiful baby girl. For a week, you touched so many with your presence. You were laid to rest on July 4, 2018, but you continue to touch many lives in incredible ways….

You were born with a heart full of love. When you got your angel wings, one of your heart valves was given to an 8-month old boy, in order to save his life. With your selfless and amazing gift, you became one of Lifesharing’s many tissue donor heroes. You will always be my hero, too.

We love and miss you every single day. Happy Birthday, Ava.

Love,

Mom
Ava’s mother, Lucia Briones, made the brave decision to donate her daughter’s tissues. Baby Ava’s final heroic act spared a little boy’s parents the excruciating heartbreak of losing a child. In her short life, Ava impacted so many people — she is missed every single day.
📸: Photo by Danielle Griggs, volunteer photographer with the group ‘Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep’. Photos re-posted courtesy of Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep.
For more information on Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep: https://www.nowilaymedowntosleep.org
Lifesharing is the federally-designated nonprofit organization that coordinates organ and tissue donation in San Diego and Imperial counties. We are humbled to work with families such as Ava’s.


🎥: https://youtu.be/B-5hzC-Yf3o?si=leJIpU4O4iG0F_ty

Ava Briones was born on June 28, 2018. Weighing 7.03 lbs. and measuring 19 inches long, she was the smallest of three children. For a week, this beautif...

06/27/2025

TWO FAMILIES, ONE HEART… ONE SPECIAL EVENING ✨ Lifesharing received an invitation to the regional Emmy awards — our film honoring organ donor Peyton Nurse was nominated in two categories. The awards ceremony was a black tie event, so we got dressed up… after all, we were representing Peyton. (Look closely in this photo, you’ll see that we’re wearing our ‘Peyton’ buttons.)
Our film titled “Two Families - One Heart” tells the story of Lifesharing organ donor Peyton Nurse and his heart/kidney recipient, Harley Duffer. The film features extensive interviews with Peyton’s parents, Capt. (Ret) Nigel Nurse and Dr. Lesley Nurse. (We’ll leave the link below in case you’d like to watch the film.) Though we did not take home an Emmy statuette, we celebrated the special reunion between these two amazing families. Heart/kidney recipient Harley Duffer and his wife Justine drove all the way from Arizona to be there in honor of Peyton 💙💚
As is typical for award ceremonies, we prepared acceptance speeches “just in case”. We want to share a few excerpts from the speech written by Peyton’s mother, Dr. Lesley Nurse: “We are grateful for the honor to continue telling Peyton and Harley’s story, which shows how beauty can come in the midst of devastation. How life is eternal. And how love binds us all together through organ donation.” 🦋
From L-R: Heart/kidney recipient Harley Duffer, Harley’s wife Justine Duffer, Lifesharing Public Relations Director Anne State (photographer & editor of the film), Peyton’s mother Dr. Lesley Nurse and her fiancé Javier Varela
Thank you to Lifesharing Executive Director Jeff Trageser and Director of Donor Development & Strategic Partnerships Samantha Blaz for supporting these film efforts as a way to educate the public and to honor our organ and tissue donor heroes.
Special thanks to for inviting us to be part of this special event.
🎥: https://youtu.be/v4JHhhcC3fQ (to watch our Emmy-nominated film)

06/25/2025

A new national role for Lifesharing Executive Director Jeff Trageser!

At AOPO’s Annual Meeting, Jeff Trageser, Executive Director at , officially began his service as AOPO President with energy, gratitude, and a powerful call to lead. Reflecting on his early days in the OPO community, Jeff reminded us that, “When no problems exist, you don’t really need a leader. But when times are tough – leaders step up.” He urged OPO professionals to rise above and collaborate: “We all have much more in common than differences. All of us work with, and support the teams who work with, hospitals and caregivers to engage grieving families to advocate for organ donation and save lives. And we are stronger when we come together and support each other. Our commonalities bind us together.” Together, we lead – and together, we save lives.

06/21/2025

STOP BY OUR BOOTH AT THE COOPER FAMILY FOUNDATION’s JUNETEENTH Healing the Community Festival! The event is being held today (Sat. June 21st) at Memorial Park on Ocean View Blvd until 630pm. Look for the “Donate Life” logo on our tent.
Know the past, shape the future.
Special thanks to for inviting Lifesharing to be part of this amazing event.
📸: Courtesy of Lifesharing Surgical Services Coordinator Guillermo Mazon who took this selfie 😄

06/19/2025

June 19 is Juneteenth, a day to honor the strength, resilience, and freedom of Black communities. It marks the moment in 1865 when the last enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.

At AMAT, we recognize that freedom is not just a historical milestone. It is an ongoing commitment to equity in all spaces, including organ, eye, and tissue donation. Today and every day, we work to build trust, address disparities, and create a system where every community has equal access to the gift of life.

We invite our members, partners, and community to reflect on Juneteenth, to learn, and to act.

06/13/2025

PROUD TO BE PART OF THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL Organ Donation and Transplantation Conference (Primer Foro Internacional de Donación y Trasplante 2025) in León, Guanajuato, Mexico 🇲🇽 At the podium: Lifesharing Organ Recovery Specialist Dr. Armando Contreras Morales.

06/10/2025

LYNN IS CELEBRATING THE 11TH ANNIVERSARY OF HER DOUBLE-LUNG 🫁 TRANSPLANT TODAY 💙💚 Lifesharing volunteer Lynn Tasto is reflecting on the gift of life given to her more than a decade ago: “Every time I see my oxygen saturations, I smile and am giddy. Each time I gather with friends and family and am able to laugh out loud is a blessing. Each time I go on walks, feel the breeze and sunshine is a blessing. Each time I get to show up for someone is a blessing. All the bonus years that I’m able to be a part of people’s lives is a miracle. I’ve done big, amazing wonderful things with my bonus life, too, but the normal experiences are the most treasured. They are constant reminders of this precious gift of life💙💚”