17-Year-Old Young Tissue Recipient and 14 Tissue Donors to Share the Healing Power of Cornea and Tissue Donation at the 2026 OneLegacy Donate Life Rose Parade® Float

AZUSA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A 17-year-old high school junior from Pomeroy, WA and 14 cornea and tissue donors will be honored on the 2026 OneLegacy Donate Life float, Treasure Every Moment Together, as part of the iconic Rose Parade^® on New Year’s Day.

The 2026 OneLegacy Donate Life Float, Treasure Every Moment Together is the centerpiece of a regional and national effort to reach millions of people who watch the Rose Parade with the important message that organ, eye and tissue donation saves and heals lives. This young tissue recipient and the 14 floral portraits or floragraphs of cornea and tissue donors that will be featured on or around the treasure chest of the float represent the healing and transformational power of tissue donation.

One donor can improve over 75 lives as a tissue donor. Tissues that are crucial to saving lives and help heal and restore mobility include heart valves, skin grafts for burn survivors, bone, ligament and nerve allografts. Each year, approximately 60,000 tissue donors provide lifesaving and healing tissue for transplant. Approximately 2.5 million tissue transplants are performed every year.

The 2026 OneLegacy Donate Life Rose Parade Float tissue recipient is:

• Braxton McKeirnan, a high school student and varsity athlete from Pomeroy, WA, who received two healing bone grafts to repair his shoulder after several sports injuries while playing football. Braxton is sponsored by JRF Ortho.

According to the Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA), in 2024, over 51,000 people in the United States received a cornea transplant, with eye banks providing tissue for more than 71,000 sight-restoring corneal transplants globally.

14 cornea and tissue donors healed the lives of over one thousand children and adults. These donors are going to be honored on the 2026 OneLegacy Donate Life float with a floral portrait or floragraph.

• Aidan Joseph “AJ” Skinner, a 12-year-old student and aspiring chef from Reading, MA, who donated his organs and tissues after a fatal brain hemorrhage from an undiagnosed AVM. Aidan is being honored by New England Donor Services.
• Chad Stacy, an U.S. Marine and family man from Olathe, KS who helped heal many lives as a tissue donor after passing from an auto accident. Chad is being honored by Midwest Transplant Network.
• Erik Rushford, a 22-year-old kind and generous young man from Walton Beach, FL, who enjoyed playing soccer and mentoring young athletes. Erik saved and healed many lives as an organ and tissue donor. He is being honored by LifeNet Health.
• Jaime de los Santos, a devoted plumber, loyal friend, and family man from Van Nuys, CA who saved and healed lives as an organ and tissue donor. Jaime is being honored by OneLegacy.
• James Reeve, a boat racing enthusiast from Kingsburg, CA who considered boating more than a hobby. It was his passion. He died at a boating event but was able to save and heal countless lives through his donation. James is being honored by OneLegacy.
• Jeffrey Ng, a gentle and caring dentist from Yucaipa, CA who lived a full life next to his wife, children and grandchildren, and who healed many lives as a tissue donor. Jeffrey is being honored by OneLegacy.
• Jenny Fedele Fennel, an aspiring nurse and mother of one from Riverside, CA who enjoyed spending time with her family and who gave her time to help others. She became a cornea donor upon her sudden passing. Jenny is being honored by OneLegacy.
• Jordan Brister, an 18-year-old student and athlete from Las Vegas, NV who had dreams of being an U.S. Air Force pararescue jumper, and who saved and healed lives as an organ and tissue donor. Jordan will be honored by Palm Mortuaries and Cemeteries.
• Kevin Morales Avena, a young man from Fontana, CA who lived a life of service, helping local animal shelters, adopting three dogs and volunteering as a firefighter. He saved many lives as an organ, tissue, and cornea donor. Kevin is honored by OneLegacy.
• Mark Daniel Flores, a 20-year-old behavior specialist from Southern California who was on the path to becoming a firefighter. His true passion lay in music, especially as a bass player. After his life was cut short in a motorcycle accident, he became a cornea and tissue donor. Mark Daniel is being honored by OneLegacy.
• Patrice Sanders, a 59-year-old pediatric nurse who worked at the ER and pediatric ICU at Children’s Hospital Central California, and who became an organ and tissue donor after suffering from a sudden stroke. Patrice is being honored by Donor Network West.
• Peter Lee, a 66-year-old man from Sparks, NV who followed a path shaped by the love of healing, knowledge and connection, serving as a crew member for the Grateful Dead community and immersing himself in Native American traditions. Peter saved and healed lives as an organ and tissue donor and he is being honored by Donor Network West.
• Thomas Dolan, a 75-year-old car visionary from Reno, NV, who built a thriving career in the automotive industry, and who was a double lung recipient and he became a cornea donor after his death.
• Vivian Lefferts, a 66-year-old mother, wife and organ donation advocate from Canton, IL, whose son passed away suddenly from an aortic dissection in 2004, and who rode on the Donate Life float in 2013 to honor her son’s memory. Vivian and her husband Larry have advocated for organ, eye and tissue donation, and upon her sudden passing, Vivian became a cornea donor. Vivian is being honored by OneLegacy.

Celebrating 23 years of participation in the traditional Rose Parade^® New Year’s Day celebrations, the OneLegacy Donate Life Rose Parade^® Float is the world’s most visible campaign to inspire organ, eye and tissue donation and to deliver the simple and powerful message that donation saves and heals lives. The 2026 float would not be possible without the help of more than 20 sponsors, including organ procurement organizations, transplant centers, hospitals, community partners and organ, eye and tissue donation advocacy organizations.

To learn more about the OneLegacy Donate Life float, visit onelegacyfloat.org