Honor was given at annual Lifeline of Ohio Gala last Saturday
Donation champions were celebrated at the Lifeline of Ohio Champions of Hope Gala, held on Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. Individuals and organizations were honored for their roles in saving and healing lives through donation.
Among those champions honored was Trinity Health System’s Jessica Porter, MSN, RN, Critical Care Clinical Manager, who was named the 2025 Donation Liaison.
In awarding Jessica, Lifeline of Ohio said:
Our hospital donation liaison champion wears many hats as a nurse, an educator, an agent for change, a decision-maker and an advocate for donor families.
Her passion for donation education is energizing. She speaks with residents and nursing students about organ donation and works to provide outreach opportunities within her community.
In every case, Jessica ensures donors and their families are cared for with the utmost compassion, and that every donor’s and donor family’s decisions are honored. She understands the importance of helping donor families achieve peace and healing, and she works with them and hospital staff to create a lasting legacy for their loved ones.
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“Jessica works tirelessly to promote organ donation awareness,” Matt Grimshaw, President and Chief Executive Officer, Trinity Health System, said. “This is a well-deserved honor, and we are blessed to have Jessica on our team.”
“I was incredibly humbled to be honored this weekend,” Porter said. “Most importantly because I wouldn’t be able to do what I do without the support of our great team of nurses, doctors and Lifeline of Ohio.”
Lifeline Awards Honor Healthcare and Community Partners
Lifeline of Ohio’s Champions of Hope awards honor their healthcare and community partners who help make organ, eye, and tissue donation a reality. In 2024, there were 145 nominations submitted by healthcare partners, community partners, and Lifeline of Ohio staff. This figure is more than double the number of nominees from 2023. Some nominees received multiple nominations.
There were 17 award categories for 2024 including Nurse Champion, Physician Champion, Donation Liaison Champion, Hospital Donation Champion, Hospital Executive Champion, Hospital PR Champion, Hospital Spiritual Care Champion, Transplant Center Champion, OB/GYN Champion, Placenta Hospital Champion, Tissue Hospital Champion, Donor Hospital Champion, Funeral Home Champion, Medical Examiner/Coroner Champion, Community Outreach Champion, Educator Champion, and BMV Champion.
Each nomination category was judged by a three-person panel comprised of a combination of members chosen from the following Lifeline of Ohio groups: staff, the Governing Board of Directors, the African American Advisory Council, and the Medical Advisory Board.
Nominations were judged according to the Champions of Hope tenets: Advocacy, Collaboration, Compassion, Innovation and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
“This honor means the world to me as I strive every day to ensure that our patients and families of our community are supported in some of the worst times of their lives,” Porter said. “My passion is to ensure that they feel the support, love, and humankindness each step of the way during the process of organ donation. It can be a confusing and daunting task so we want to make sure that they understand.”
Porter hopes her honor brings awareness to the importance of organ donation, since it’s a topic that comes up with every patient. She urges families to communicate with each other, too.
“Talk with your family members about their wishes should something happen to them. These are difficult conversations to have, but truly are important. I want people to understand that we are here for their support and guidance through the entire process and that they are never alone.”
Gala Celebrated Overcoming Adversity
“Run toward adversity” was one of the inspiring messages shared by Jason Schechterle, a former Phoenix, Ariz., police officer and tissue recipient, who gave the keynote address at Lifeline of Ohio’s Champions of Hope Gala. The event drew around 400 guests, who gathered to celebrate and honor individuals and organizations for the roles they play in saving and healing lives through organ, eye, tissue, and placenta donation.
Mr. Schechterle, who suffered severe burns to over 40 percent of his body when a taxi traveling more than 100 miles per hour crashed into his police cruiser, shared his harrowing story of survival and the incredible impact donation made in his journey of healing.
“This event is a special reminder of the incredible collaboration throughout the donation process,” Andrew Mullins, Chief Executive Officer, Lifeline of Ohio, said. “We are so pleased to be able to honor our partners for the important roles they play from registration of the donation decision to caring for our donors and families, recipients and patients waiting for their lifesaving gifts.”
As Lifeline of Ohio celebrates its 40th Anniversary this year, a Legacy Award was presented to Linda Jones, co-founder and former CEO of the organization. Linda’s work was instrumental in developing donation protocols, building relationships with hospital partners, developing community programs, and working with state legislators on several key initiatives—including the implementation of the Ohio Donor Registry, which today holds the donation decision of more than 5.7 million Ohioans.
“None of our current Lifeline of Ohio staff was working for the organization when it began 40 years ago,” Mullins told the crowd. “However, every one of us today understands the responsibility we have in continuing the work of those who came before us and set this mission in motion.”
Thanks to the generosity of donors throughout Lifeline of Ohio’s service area, in 2023, the donation decision of 182 organ donor heroes and their families was honored, saving the lives of 445 people. In addition, 1,004 donor heroes gave the gift of healing through tissue and cornea donation, and 588 people made the decision to donate their placentas to create thousands of healing tissue grafts.
Founded in 1984, Lifeline of Ohio is an independent, non-profit organization, that promotes and coordinates the donation of human organs and tissue for transplantation. Lifeline of Ohio serves 97 hospitals and facilities in 38 counties in Ohio and two in West Virginia and is designated as an organ procurement organization through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
For more information about organ, eye, tissue, and placenta donation, visit: http://www.lifelineofohio.org
Further information related to Jessica Porter’s work can be provided by contacting Laurie Labishak. Information regarding Lifeline of Ohio can be obtained from Jessica Petersen. Contact details for both ladies can be found in the header of this press release.
