Guidelines and tips for writing to organ recipients

Many times, families want to write to the recipients of their loved ones’ organs to inquire how the recipients are doing and to share about their loved ones. Often, families have found that communicating with recipients can be healing. Lifeline of Ohio is here to support you in any way we can.

Some ideas on what you can include in a letter:

  • Only share your first name (do not include your last name, city, home address or phone number)
  • Information about yourself and your loved one (age, interests, hobbies and/or family information)
  • Special memories with your loved one
  • Photo of your loved one
  • Questions you have for the recipient

Additional Information

  • You can send a card, letter, or use our online tool below to submit your letter.
  • On a separate piece of paper, write your full name, the full name of your loved one who was a donor and the date of their death; this allows us to correctly identify the recipient and forward your correspondence.
  • If there is more than one transplant recipient, you can write a separate letter for each recipient or Lifeline of Ohio can copy your letter and forward it to each recipient.
  • If you’d prefer for us to make a copy, please indicate this on the separate piece of paper.
  • Send your card or letter to:
    Attn: Aftercare Services
    Lifeline of Ohio
    770 Kinnear Rd.
    Columbus, OH 43212
  • Any information in your correspondence that might breach confidentiality will be redacted.
  • Please communicate in a sensitive manner.
Write a Letter Online

Guidelines and tips for writing to tissue and cornea recipients

If your loved one was a tissue donor with our organization, the process is less direct because the transplants can occur months or even years after your loved one’s passing. Tissue recipients are unable to be directly identified unless they write first, but we are able to tell families how many people their loved one was able to heal.

If your loved one was a cornea donor, you may be able to write to the recipient(s); please contact Aftercare Services for more information.

Have questions?

For more information and support on writing to recipients, please contact Lifeline of Ohio’s Aftercare Coordinators at 1-800-525-5667 or by email at aftercare@lifelineofohio.org

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