Transplant Teams Honor Selfless Individuals' Gifts to Critically Ill Patients

Heroic individuals’ lifesaving generosity is in the spotlight as University of Rochester Medicine expanded the Gifts of Life Honor Wall at Strong Memorial Hospital.

Last year nearly 250 people donated organs, eye, tissue and bone marrow at Strong, providing precious second chances for critically ill patients. Many of their names were added to the Honor Wall, an inspiring, digital tribute to their selflessness, located near the main lobby.

“We are grateful for all who provide the Gift of Life to others,” said Kathy Parrinello, CEO of Strong and Highland hospitals. “While grieving the loss of a loved one, families make transplant possible, and living donors selflessly share a part of themselves to help another person live a full life.”

While facing the loss of her teenage son, Crystal Carr flashed back to the day 16-year-old Talon applied for his learner’s permit at the Department of Motor Vehicles.

While completing the paperwork, he paused at the opportunity to enroll in the Donate Life Registry.

“I remember having a conversation with Talon about what it means to be an organ donor. I told him, as I had with my other teens, that I would support his decision either way,” Carr said. “He selected ‘yes,’ and we were on our way.”

A kind and caring student, Talon enjoyed swimming, football, track, and playing the tuba in the band. He had a great sense of humor and could easily make others laugh.

Five months later, tragedy occurred and “it was never really a question of whether we would uphold Talon's wishes. I knew what he would want because we had that conversation,” she said.

Their devastated family found comfort knowing his choice to be an organ donor gave four people precious second chances, as well as the gift of sight and healing through cornea and tissue donation.

“Talon isn't truly gone from us. He lives on within those he saved,” said Carr, who recently met a woman who received one of Talon’s kidneys.

URochester Medicine offers Upstate New York’s only heart and liver transplant programs, in addition to kidney, pancreas and bone marrow transplantation. Teams at Strong performed 237 transplants in 2025.

Today, there are more than 100,000 people waiting for transplants in the United States, including about 500 at Strong. The need for organs far exceeds availability, which means very sick patients must wait longer for life-saving surgeries.

Finger Lakes Donor Recovery Network coordinates organ donation in 20 counties with a population of 2.4 million and serves two transplant centers and 38 hospitals in the Finger Lakes Region, and Central and Northern New York. Staff also work to raise awareness to expand the state’s organ, eye, and tissue registry.