Portrait of a joyful young girl in golden light

A Storytelling & Advocacy Movement

One Yes Can Save
Eight Lives.

Maiya's Heart Project is a legacy-driven movement transforming the conversation around organ donation — through storytelling, representation, faith, and the families who keep love in motion.

104,000+
People waiting
17
Lost each day
8
Lives one donor saves
1
Yes changes everything
Her Story
A mother and her daughter holding hands at golden hour

Maiya's Story

A daughter. A wait. A legacy in motion.

Maiya was born with a heart that loved bigger than her body could hold. She was bright, brave, deeply faithful — and she lived her years on the transplant waiting list with a grace that quietly changed every room she entered.

When her mother, Sharnell Lydia, lost Maiya before that one yes could reach her, she made a promise: that no other family in our communities would feel this alone, and no other story would go unheard.

Maiya's Heart Project is the continuation of her light — a movement built from grief, grown with love, and given freely to every family still waiting.

Legacy
Representation
Healing
Advocacy

Real Stories. Real Families. Real Impact.

The faces behind every yes.

Recipients, donor families, caregivers, and advocates — gathered in their own words. This is the heart of the movement.

Renee J.

My daughter received her heart on a Tuesday. Somewhere, another mother said yes. We carry her name with us forever.

Renee J.

Recipient's Mother — Atlanta

Pastor Elijah W.

Our church never talked about donation until Maiya's family came. Now we do. That is what legacy looks like.

Pastor Elijah W.

Faith Partner — Detroit

Amara T.

Saying yes for my husband was the hardest love I ever gave. Knowing four people walked home because of him — that is how I keep him here.

Amara T.

Donor Family — Houston

Every story shifts a generation. Yours could be the one a family is waiting to hear.

Share Your Story →

Our Focus

Six ways we keep love in motion.

01

Organ Donation Awareness

Reframing donation as an act of love, faith, and legacy — not a clinical decision.

02

Minority Donor Advocacy

Closing the representation gap with culturally rooted education and trusted voices.

03

Family Storytelling

Honoring donor families and recipients through immersive, dignified narrative work.

04

Faith & Community Outreach

Partnering with churches and pastors to bring the conversation into sacred spaces.

05

Legacy Initiatives

Building living tributes — scholarships, gatherings, and movements named for the loved.

06

Community Healing

Creating soft places for grief, joy, and the long work of carrying love forward.

A Black family embracing at sunset

Changing the Face of Organ Donation

Every community deserves the chance to say yes to life.

For decades, the donation conversation has skipped over the people most impacted by the wait. We are changing that — through trusted voices, faith spaces, and stories that look like home.

·

Education

Conversations grounded in our histories, not statistics.

·

Trust

Built through proximity — neighbor to neighbor, pew to pew.

·

Representation

Stories that reflect the families actually waiting.

·

Healing

Advocacy that holds grief with the same tenderness as hope.

A Year in Movement

Five seasons. One continuous yes.

Our calendar is a rhythm of remembrance and renewal — not isolated events, but a national heartbeat.

  1. 01 / March

    Gift of Life Season

    Opening the year with stories of recipients and the donors who made tomorrow possible.

  2. 02 / April

    One Yes Awareness Season

    A national push to register, talk to family, and pass the conversation forward.

  3. 03 / July

    Maiya's Legacy Season

    Honoring Maiya's birthday with community gatherings, art, and remembrance.

  4. 04 / August

    Lights of Legacy Season

    Candlelight walks across cities for the families still waiting and the ones who said yes.

  5. 05 / November

    Faith & Legacy Conversations

    Sacred dialogue in churches and homes about love, choice, and what we leave behind.

Community & Events

Gatherings that move generations.

One Yes 5K Walk / Run
Movement

One Yes 5K Walk / Run

Cities walking together at sunrise — every step honoring a name on the list.

Candlelight Walk
Remembrance

Candlelight Walk

An evening procession for the families waiting and the ones who said yes.

Storytelling Nights
Storytelling

Storytelling Nights

Intimate evenings where donor families, recipients, and advocates share unfiltered.

Faith Partnerships
Faith

Faith Partnerships

Sunday conversations, pulpit collaborations, and pastor-led donor education.