For patients, donation for transplantation can be life-saving or life-improving. The need for transplantable organs and tissues is very real. More than 80,000 Americans are waiting for organ transplants, of which 8,000 live in New York State, and approximately 6,800 live here in the New York metropolitan area.

Funeral directors, with their broad experience in grief counseling, can facilitate a positive donation experience for families. As the organ and tissue donation process ends, another process begins: the funeral.

Funeral directors are often asked questions by families when faced with the choice of saying "yes" or "no" to organ and tissue donation. By sharing valuable information with the deceased's next of kin, funeral directors can play a vital and unique role in helping family members, in their time of so much grief, to make a decision about donating life.

Funeral directors can offer donor families various ways to celebrate their loved one's lives. For instance, some families may choose to have their loved one's gift known in an obituary while others will want to maintain their confidentiality.

Ultimately, in the midst of tragedy and loss, organ and tissue donation can be a source of comfort for a grieving family. So many donor families have said that they found that. through donation, the legacy of their loved ones live on.

Funeral directors can help families understand that there is no greater gift than the "Gift of Life."