We recognize that while this selfless decision offers renewed life and sight to others, it often comes at a time of profound sorrow for the donor’s family, friends and community.
To support you in the days, weeks and months ahead, we’ve compiled a comprehensive collection of resources. These include practical guidance to help you navigate the early moments of loss, as well as grief-specific materials that we hope will bring comfort and understanding as you journey through this time of healing.
Practical resources
Losing a loved one is one of life’s most difficult challenges — and it’s often made harder by the many tasks that must be addressed in the days that follow. From writing an obituary and planning a funeral to managing financial and legal affairs, the number of decisions can quickly become overwhelming at a time when your heart is still heavy with grief.
To help ease this burden, we’ve consulted with funeral directors, financial planners and estate attorneys to compile a thoughtful collection of practical resources. Our hope is that these tools will allow you to spend less time researching and more time surrounded by the comfort of family and friends.
Grief resources
Donor family journal
Much like grief, the donor family journal we provide is unique to you and your experience. There is no right or wrong way to do it. The rules of grammar and spelling don’t apply here, and there is no minimum or maximum word count. What you write doesn’t have to be particularly profound or complex. It just needs to come from your heart.
While you are in the middle of it, grief can feel unbearably heavy. Even in the best of times, you can still feel the weight of loss. This journal is a place to slow down your thoughts and express yourself without fear or judgment. It is a place where you can unburden yourself, take your most heartfelt and difficult thoughts and emotions, and release them by putting them on a page.
Additional grief resources
Grief is a natural, human response to the loss of someone you love. While nearly everyone experiences grief at some point, the way we each process that grief is deeply personal and shaped by our relationship with the person who has passed. There is no single path through grief — no “right” way to mourn.
What can help during these challenging times is understanding grief and knowing where to turn for support. That’s why we’ve worked with grief counselors, clinicians and individuals who have experienced loss to gather resources that offer insight, comfort and connection for our donor families during this tender time.
Explore books about grief and grief support organizations
Honor a donor
The choice to become an eye, organ and tissue donor is an extraordinary expression of kindness and generosity. At Eversight, we are committed to helping families honor the legacy of their loved one’s selfless gift.
We offer several meaningful ways to remember and celebrate the lives of these extraordinary individuals:
Write a recipient
Four to six weeks after donation, Eversight will communicate with you about the outcome of your loved one’s gift. If their donation resulted in a transplant, you have the option to write to the recipient(s) — sharing more about your loved one, yourself or your family.
Some donor families find comfort and healing through this connection. For others, the idea may feel too personal or not helpful on their grief journey. The decision to write is entirely up to you and should be made when, and if, it feels right.
Anyone in your family may write, though only the legal next of kin may authorize the release of correspondence.
Learn more:
