Loren Leighton

Type of Donation:             Organ, tissue and cornea donor

Age and Location:             Age 62 – Springfield, OR

Donation Date:                  November 11, 2018

Sponsor:                               Honored by Dignity Memorial Providers of Sacramento

LOREN’S STORY

Loren Leighton was born in Frankfurt, Germany while his dad was stationed in the Army. He grew up in Coos Bay, Oregon and graduated from Oregon State University as a chemical engineer. He prioritized his life with God first, family second, then his career and hobbies. He had been married 40 years.

Loren LOVED spending time with his wife, 3 daughters, their spouses and 3 grandchildren. He enjoyed camping, traveling, playing games and completing puzzles. He passionately worshipped and served the Lord, mentored young men and facilitated classes for successful marriages.

He was an avid fisherman while living in Springfield, Oregon. Salmon and steelhead fishing were at the top of his list, but he also enjoyed catching brown trout and kokanee.

Running became a more recent passion. He started by running the Prefontaine Memorial 10k in his hometown and then progressed to running a dozen half marathons. In June 2018 he completed his first marathon in Newport, Oregon and qualified to run the Boston Marathon in April 2019.

Unfortunately, in November 2018 Loren had a tragic ladder accident and sustained severe head trauma, passing away 3 days later. As a registered organ donor, he donated his liver, both kidneys and corneas. Loren’s family had the privilege of participating in an Honor Walk for him at the hospital. Staff, family and friends lined the hallway as he was wheeled to surgery and was recognized for being an organ and cornea donor.

Loren’s family received a letter from one of the kidney recipients and she is doing well. In addition, two quilt blocks were created in his honor, to be part of the Donate Life Northwest “Threads of Life” quilt that was unveiled in April 2019.

Loren’s bucket list was to run the Boston Marathon with his youngest daughter, Lindsey. Even though he had passed, Lindsey was able to run it in April 2019. She met a man in the last mile that had a picture of his daughter and Donate Life logos on his shirt. Lindsey asked him to finish the race with her, as she envisioned finishing it with her father.