New England Donor Services

12/20/2025

New England Donor Services’ Community Projects Specialist Seth Newman has started strong at NEDS! Since beginning in February of this year, Seth has participated in and held many educational events and presentations to educate youth on donation! In 2025, Seth participated in:
🔹130 Presentations, primarily at Driver Education Programs and High School Health Classes
🔹Presented to over 3,400 students!
🔹Participated in 21 tabling events at health fairs, career fairs, conferences & MORE!
🔹Participated in 12 events at State Houses or City/Town Halls
🔹44 RMV/DMV Visits

12/19/2025

This morning, New England Donor Services joined Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, Barbara Rachelson, State Representative, Burlington, Commissioner of the Vermont DMV Andrew Collier, Deputy Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Health Julie Arel, and other local representatives at Burlington City Hall to honor the incredible gift of organ donation during the holiday season.

NEDS volunteer Lara Govendo Grell shared her story about receiving a life-saving double lung transplant after cystic fibrosis left her own lungs severely damaged. NEDS Board Member and Donor Family member, Hon. Geoffrey Crawford also gave a tribute to his daughter and spoke about the importance of donation.

Thank you, Mayor Mulvaney-Stanak and the City of Burlington, for your support of donation! City of Burlington, Vermont 05401 USA

12/19/2025

New England Donor Services' Aftercare department is dedicated to supporting donor and recipient families. In addition to providing support and resources for families, the Aftercare Department is dedicated to supporting the communities it serves and providing support at NEDS’ signature events. A few initiatives and events that the Aftercare Team was involved with in 2025 included:

🔹Organized Virtual Donor Remembrance Ceremony - found on NEDS' YouTube Channel
🔹Annual CT & MA Blue & Green Walk/5Ks
🔹NEDS's Golf Tournament
🔹State House & City Hall Events
🔹First Annual Donor Family Craft Day
🔹Participated in Boston Children's Hospital’s Transplant Family Day and shared information on writing to donor families, volunteering, and Sharing Your Story
🔹Multiple presentations on the ripple effect donation has on families and those who work in donation and transplant, both inside and out of NEDS
🔹Volunteered at Healthy Waltham’s Food Pantry - sorted vegetables from local farms and set up the food pantry.
🔹Provided Connect to Purpose for students of NEDS’ Galen V. Henderson, MD Program
🔹Collaborated with Hospital Relations staff at transplant centers
🔹Supported meaningful connections during Donor Family & Recipient Meetings.
🔹Community and hospital Donate Life flag raisings and information tables
🔹Virtual Candle Lighting on Facebook
🔹Partnered with New England transplant centers throughout the region to promote correspondence between recipients/donor families

12/18/2025

New England Donor Services’ Galen V. Henderson, MD Program is an 8-week summer program that immerses medical students into the world of organ donation and transplantation. In 2025, 7 medical students from Harvard Medical School, Brown University, Tufts University School of Medicine, UConn, and University of Vermont engaged in activities that few medical students experience:

🔹Observed organ and tissue recoveries
🔹Shadowed transplant surgeons and observed transplant and living donor surgery
🔹Participated in Corneal Wet Lab
🔹Interacted with donor families, transplant recipients, and living donors
🔹Participated in conversations and seminars with notable leaders in organ donation and transplantation
🔹Visited with Massachusetts state legislators to talk about donation and transplantation
🔹Participated in community-based donation events
🔹Completed a mentored scholarly or quality improvement project
🔹And much more!

Early immersion through the Henderson Program expanded medical students’ awareness and understanding of the medical, surgical, legal, ethical, psychosocial, and regulatory/policy aspects of donation and transplantation. Learn more at https://neds.org/henderson-program/

12/17/2025

Thank you to our amazing volunteers who find opportunities in their communities to promote donation. We appreciate you and recognize each of your voices and efforts as critical to our mission to help save and heal more lives. Just SOME of the amazing volunteer activities and events that happened this year were:

🔹NEDS Volunteer & Donor Spouse Kathy O'Brien was at 6 baseball games this summer on Cape Cod to promote donation in honor of her husband, Shawn.

🔹There were many volunteer meetups in various locations, from the NEDS Waltham office to ice cream socials to pumpkin patches.

🔹 Two of NEDS volunteers, Deb Johnson and Priya Ramdas, were recognized locally for their volunteer work with the Volunteer Service Award from Volunteer NH’s 2025 Spirit of NH Award and Hartford Business Journal’s 2025 Healthcare Hero Award, respectively.

🔹NEDS Volunteer Jennifer Stanowski held a NEDS table at the Keene SwampBats game in honor of her daughter Jasmine.

🔹NEDS volunteer and Donor Family Miguel Aguilar Soto ran The San Francisco Marathon at the end of July! Miguel proudly wore NEDS’ “Organ Donors Save Lives” race shirt!

🔹 The SODA: Student Organ Donation Advocates - SODA National chapter at Northeastern University hosted a table at the Colleges of the Fenway annual Block Party event and shared information about donation with fellow students!

🔹New England Donor Services had a fun night at the ballpark for Donate Life Night with the Portland Sea Dogs! NEDS volunteer and heart recipient Mark Calkins threw out the first pitch in honor of his donor, who gave him the Gift of Life.

🔹NEDS volunteer Susan Flint and family marched again this year in Braintree's 4th of July Parade in honor of her son Lucas, who saved the lives of five people as an organ donor.

Are you interested in promoting donation in your community? To learn more information, visit: https://neds.org/volunteers-overview/ or email volunteerservices@neds.org

12/16/2025

Thank you to NEDS staff for making a positive impact—far beyond hospital walls. Their dedication to helping others in our communities speaks volumes about their commitment to making the world a better place. This year, NEDS staff have gone above and beyond, here are just a few ways they have contributed to strengthening and uplifting communities:

🔹Volunteered at Gaining Ground Farm to help grow produce for food pantries, meal programs, and shelters in Greater Boston and Eastern MA.
🔹Partnered with Fresenius Medical Care to deliver education and raise awareness about the importance of organ donation and transplantation.
🔹Volunteered at Healthy Waltham throughout the year to help increase access to healthy foods in underserved communities.
🔹Collected 300 pounds of groceries for food programs that serve families in need.
🔹Fully remote staff in six states outside of MA volunteered in their own communities.
🔹Backpacks of essential items were assembled for unhoused individuals and donated to the Community Day Center of Waltham and the Middlesex Human Service Agency.
🔹Participated in youth career programs and outreach impacting hundreds of students.

12/15/2025

New England Donor Services’ Community Outreach Team and Done Vida New England work continuously to provide support, resources, and information about organ and tissue donation to communities in New England throughout the year. In 2025, this group participated in and held many community events to educate different communities on donation, including:

🔹Hosting a series of events on Martha’s Vineyard in celebration of National Multiethnic Donor Awareness Month, featuring several panels on organ donation and health equity, in addition to a walking gallery tour across Oak Bluffs. The series brought together NEDS representatives, medical professionals from Boston Medical Center, alumni and students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and other stakeholders for a week of health and community-focused events.

🔹Local artists from the Hartford Community and abroad came together to showcase their incredible displays of art at the ‘Art of Healing’ Open Call Exhibit at The 224 EcoSpace. The event was made possible by NEDS and The 224 EcoSpace.

🔹NEDS/Done Vida New England had our second altar at the VROCC Day of the Dead event in Boston, MA. And we had our first altar at the Connecticut Museum of Culture and History’s Dia de los Mu***os initiatives in Hartford, CT.

12/15/2025

It's that time!! Registration for NEDS CT Blue & Green Walk/5K is NOW OPEN! Join us on April 26th in Bloomfield, CT, as we remember those who gave through donation, honor living donors, and celebrate lives renewed through transplantation.

Funds raised help support vital campaigns and community education about the importance of joining the Donor Registry. Let’s take steps together to make a difference!

Use code EARLYBIRD for a $5 discount on your walk or 5K race registration valid through 12/22!

Register here: https://give.classy.org/2026ctbluegreen

The 2026 Connecticut Blue & Green Walk/5K is our region's premier event dedicated to raising awareness for organ and tissue donation. This inspiring day brings together donor families, transplant recipients, living donors, and community supporters to celebrate the Gift of Life.

12/15/2025

On behalf of our Aftercare Team, we would like to welcome you to our virtual candle lighting ceremony. We honor all donors and their families for giving the gift of life through organ and tissue donation. Please join us tonight by lighting a candle from 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm and commenting a photo of your light below. We also encourage you to share any photos or additional information.

12/12/2025

Have you marked your calendar for Sunday?! We look forward to seeing the many candles lit from your homes and hearing about what it means to you. Let us know if you have any questions about how to participate in the virtual candle lighting. https://www.facebook.com/NewEnglandDonorServices

12/11/2025

Yesterday, New England Donor Services gathered at Lowell City Hall to celebrate the Season of Giving and the Gift of Organ Donation. Joining the event were Lowell's Director of Health and Human Services Lisa Golden, State Representative Vanna Howard, State Rep. Tara Hong, and Massachusetts Department of Public Health officials to celebrate the gift of organ donation this holiday season.

NEDS volunteer Ed Boynton shared his story as a heart recipient who received a transplant in 2024. NEDS volunteer Linda Campbell also shared about her husband, Richard, who passed away in 2020, and generously donated his bone, tendon, and tissue in the hope of helping someone in need.

Thank you to the City of Lowell, MA - Government for your support of NEDS’ donation mission!

12/11/2025

Please join us in welcoming our newest NEDS team members!

🔹Getander M., Tissue Recovery Specialist
🔹Junia G., Central Supply Specialist
🔹Paul S., Senior Systems Administrator
🔹Morgan N., Aftercare Administrative Coordinator

Welcome to NEDS! We're so glad you're here!

Want to join our mission? Click here https://neds.org/careers-overview/ to learn more about NEDS' lifesaving mission & check out our career opportunities!