Sharon Pakis — Organ Donation

Speakers Friday, June 16, 2023

Rotary in Tennessee has had a long history of saving lives through encouraging Tennesseans to register as organ, eye, and tissue donors and Green Hill Rotarians Boyd Fulton and Tom Meredith were the driving forces. Recognizing the need for organ and tissue donation, Boyd and Tom created the “Share Your Life” Foundation with the sole purpose of educating Rotarians across TN, the US and neighboring countries on the need to register as donors, long before states created electronic registries. The foundation laid the groundwork for what is now Donate Life Tennessee, whose sole mission is to educate and save lives through donation and transplantation. There is an article in the April 2003 Rotarian featuring Boyd and Tom’s mission.

As a member of the Green Hills Rotary Club, he encouraged the then president, William J. (Bill) Warner to involve club members by organizing registration drives and educational events in the community. Unfortunately, Bill Warner died suddenly at the age of 37 from a massive heart attack and was an organ donor. Boyd began the legislative campaign to honor Bill’s gifts, resulting in the passing of the William J. (Bill) Warner/Green Hills Rotary Club Organ Procurement Act of 1997, which greatly impacted donation laws in Tennessee.

Green Hills Rotarian Sharon Pakis, Tennessee Donor Services External Affairs Manage will share Boyd’s and Tom’s journey of their impact on saving lives then and today.

Sharon Pakis, External Affairs Manager, has been with Tennessee Donor services for over 10 years and serves as the Team Lead for Donate Life Tennessee. 

 Our Current Speaker Schedule