OneLegacy’s Santa Barbara Organ Donation Walk & BBQ, Inspired by a NICU Nurse’s Legacy, Marks 10th Anniversary

What began as a tribute to Vivian Beutel and the lives she saved has grown into a community tradition, bringing hundreds together each year to walk the beach and celebrate the gift of organ, eye and tissue donation.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--On Saturday, September 20th, the Santa Barbara community will come together at Leadbetter Beach for the 10th Annual OneLegacy Organ Donation Celebration Walk & BBQ. This event honors the legacy of organ donors, including Vivian Beutel, a beloved nurse in the NICU at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital who became an organ donor after her sudden passing at the age of forty-one.

Vivian cared for the most fragile lives in the hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, treating her tiny patients and their families with unparalleled diligence, dignity, and compassion. Long after her patients left the NICU, she remained deeply committed to their journeys, organizing the Annual NICU Reunion at the Santa Barbara Zoo to reconnect families, nurses, and care teams. When she passed away unexpectedly after complications from a brain aneurysm, she became an organ donor, saving five lives, including W. Scott Burns, who received one of her kidneys, and Connie Buchs, who received her lungs.

The Santa Barbara Beach Walk and BBQ, created in 2015 to honor Vivian’s gifts through organ donation and her fondness for the ocean, has blossomed in the last decade into a celebration of all lives saved through organ donation. W. Scott Burns, the recipient of one of Vivian’s kidneys and a OneLegacy ambassador, Connie Buchs, the recipient of Vivian’s lungs and a Donate Life America Ambassador, and Vivian’s family walk side by side. At the free barbecue after the walk, Vivian’s nephew fires up the grill to serve the community, furthering his family’s spirit of giving. What started as a small group honoring one donor ten years ago has grown immensely.

As the memorial event continued year after year, more recipients, family members of donors, and medical professionals, even those unfamiliar with Vivian, participated in the walk to honor the power of organ donation. The walk has grown in attendance from a dozen people inspired by one donor to hundreds of advocates for organ donation.

“She saved my life,” said W. Scott Burns. “But more than that, I got to know her through her family. I now walk each year not just to honor my second chance, but to honor the kind of person she was.”

EVENT DETAILS

10th Annual Santa Barbara Organ Donation Celebration Walk & BBQ
Date: Saturday, September 20, 2025
Time: 2:00 – 5:00 PM (Walk starts at 3:00 PM)
Location: Leadbetter Beach, 801 Shoreline Drive, Santa Barbara, CA 93109
Walk Route: From Leadbetter Beach to Stearns Wharf and back (approx. 2 miles)
Cost: Free for all participants

Register online: https://runsignup.com/Race/CA/SantaBarbara/OrganDonationCelebrationWalkandBBQ

This milestone tenth anniversary event is free and open to the public, with food, music, remembrance activities, and opportunities to connect with donor families, recipients, and healthcare heroes. The event is generously supported by sponsors, including OneLegacy, the federally designated organ procurement organization (OPO) serving seven Southern California counties, including Santa Barbara. Other sponsors include local community groups Live Like Viv, Ride Through History and Home Improvement Center.

Currently, over 105,000 people are waiting for lifesaving organ transplants. One registered donor can save up to eight lives and heal countless others through organ, eye, and tissue donation. Becoming an eye, organ, or tissue donor is easy and can be done by registering online at donateLIFEcalifornia.org/OneLegacy or by “checking YES” at your local DMV.

For more information, visit OneLegacy.org.

About OneLegacy

OneLegacy is a nonprofit organization dedicated to saving lives through organ, eye, and tissue donation throughout Southern California, including Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara, and Kern counties. Working in close collaboration with hospitals and transplant centers, OneLegacy ensures the recovery of vital organs and tissues. Make a difference: become an organ, eye, and tissue donor by registering at OneLegacy.org/register or by checking “YES” at your local DMV. If you are not already a donor, we encourage you to consider registering today. For more information, visit OneLegacy.org.