Year in Review: Celebrating a Momentous 2025

Written by Zoe Engels, Contributing Writer and Editor

If we had to sum up 2025 for SODA: Student Organ Donation Advocates (and trust us, it’s not an easy pick), we’d go with momentum. Last year was packed with growth, creativity and widespread, student-led impact. And, honestly, we’re still thinking about it.

Here’s a look back at what our community of organ, eye, and tissue donation advocates accomplished together 👇

Impact by the Numbers

In 2025, SODA’s student leaders educated 146,224 people about organ, eye, and tissue donation and registered 5,508 new donors—some seriously incredible numbers. Every conversation, tabling event, presentation, and social post added up to something powerful: more lives touched and saved.

And yes… it was our first complete year with more than 100 chapters. 🎉 That’s 100+ campuses showing up for donation advocacy and proving that students are major changemakers. 

Turning Up the Volume 

We launched our first podcast, created to support our organ procurement organization partners’ youth education goals. The podcast shares real stories and creates new ways to connect with the next generation of donation advocates, one episode at a time.

2025 also marked a year filled with watching our students shine at national conferences, including Julia, a heart transplant recipient, and Trevor, a tissue donor family member and multicultural advocate. 

SODA was honored to be featured in Bonus Days, a print magazine for the transplant community. The feature highlighted Maddie, a liver transplant recipient and SODA chapter founder, and showcased the incredible ripple effect of student-led advocacy.

We participated in the Donate Life America Annual Conference, too, as a discussion table host at a youth education breakout session, attended by SODA Board Member Kim Charles. Being part of these national conversations reinforces what we know to be true: Student voices belong at the table.

Challenges that Make a Difference

April marked the first-ever National Donate Life Month BINGO Challenge. It helped student leaders take creative action on their campuses while making donation education fun, interactive, and impactful. 

Our third annual Campus Challenge—hosted with the Association for Advancing Tissue and Biologics (AATB), the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO), the Eye Bank Association of America, Donate Life Texas, and Second Chance Fundraising—was a standout moment of the year. Together, students registered 56 percent more donors than in 2024. That’s not just growth—that’s impact, accelerated.

Investing in Student Leaders 

Last year marked a huge milestone as we awarded the first-ever Daniel Gives Back Scholarship, alongside our HBCU Donation Advocacy Scholarship and Student Advocacy Scholarship in partnership with Second Chance Fundraising. These scholarships are investments in students who are leading with passion, empathy, and purpose.

Other Moments to Celebrate

We refreshed our chapter application process, giving us clearer insight into our growing network, welcoming chapters ready to plant deep roots and better understanding each new leader stepping into this work. Growth is exciting, and intentional growth is even better.

Looking Ahead

From 100+ chapters for a full calendar year to launching new initiatives, elevating student voices, and reaching more people than ever before, 2025 was a year that reminded us of what’s possible when we all come together and we amplify student voices. To every advocate, partner, donor family, recipient, and supporter—thank you for being part of this journey. We can’t wait to see what we build together next. 💙

Here’s to another year of impact, growth, and life-saving advocacy.