Working Together
Sharing Powerful Stories
LifeShare Carolinas is grateful for your partnership in sharing inspiring stories. We can connect you with family members of organ, eye, and tissue donors or grateful transplant recipients. Below you will find a number of resources to help you in crafting your story.
Make a Difference
Educate Our Communities
When telling the story of a donor hero or a grateful transplant recipient, you are inspiring and educating the community. As part of your story, consider the points below and how they may help your story make an even bigger impact.
Words Matter
Donation is a personal decision, and the phrases you use could make a difference in someone’s decision. Stories about donation can also bring up emotions for families of donors. We ask you to choose words that respect the donor, the gifts they gave, and the donation process.
Some words can sound cold and impersonal. Others may be confusing or misleading to the family. We recommend the terms below.
Recover Organs, Organ Recovery
Avoid using the words harvest or procure
Deceased Donor, Donor Organ, Donor Tissue
Avoid using the term cadaver
Donated Organs, Donated Eyes, Donated Tissue, Donated Gifts
Avoid using the term body parts
Mechanical Support, Ventilator Support
To avoid confusion, avoid using the phrase life support
How Donation Works
The organ, eye, and tissue donation process involves many people working together to honor this beautiful gift. The process for organ donation differs slightly from the tissue and eye donation process. Learn more about them using the links below.
Organ Donation Process
Tissue & Eye Donation Process
Frequently Asked Questions
Call to Action
When you add a call to action to your story, you are giving your audience a resource that can help them save lives.
Sign up as an organ, eye, and tissue donor today at LifeShareCarolinas.org/Register.
If you'd like to make your wishes known, we have a link to the North Carolina donor registry on our website.
Statistics Can Help
Each number represents a person – someone waiting for a transplant, someone who gave life, someone who died waiting.
1 organ donor can save up to 8 lives.
1 tissue donor can heal 75 or more people.
1 eye donor can give sight to two people.
LifeShare can provide data from our service area. We can also help you obtain state and national numbers from trusted sources.
Share the Facts
- Nationally, more than 100,000 people are waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant.
- Every day, 17 people die waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant.
- Becoming an organ donor is very rare. Only 3 in 1,000 people die in a way that allows for organ donation. You are more likely to need a transplant in your life than you are to be a donor after you pass away.
- Anyone can sign up to be a donor. Age and medical conditions will only be considered at the time of death.
- Your life always comes first. Doctors, nurses, and paramedics work hard to save every patient’s life.
- Organ, eye, and tissue donors can have an open casket funeral. Throughout the process, the body is treated with care and respect.
- All major US religions support donation as a final act of generosity and compassion.
- Signing up as a donor takes a burden off your family during a very difficult time.
- Donation can help families find healing. Donors leave behind a legacy of life, giving some peace and comfort to their families.
CONTACT US
Media Inquiries
Our team is always available to help with your story. We will make every effort to meet your deadline.
You can email Info@LifeShareCarolinas.org or
call 1-800-932-GIVE (4483).