WORCESTER, Mass. 

At the end of Donate Life Month, UMass Memorial Health is honoring donors and their families for sharing the gift of life. 

The medical center held a flag raising Monday in collaboration with New England Donor Services. 

They say more than 100,000 adults and children across the country are currently waiting for a transplant. But because of a shortage of donor organs, an average of 16 people lose their lives every day while they wait. 

Heather Bouchard is a liver transplant recipient, and she says it saved her life. 

"This means everything to me. This is awareness for people who don't know about organ donation, it's awareness for recipients who don't know how to share their story," Bouchard said "If I didn't have my gift when I received it, I probably wouldn't be here today, I wouldn't see my kids being fantastic in what they're doing. 100%."

Dr. Babak Movahedi is a transplant surgeon for UMass Memorial Health and recommends everyone become an organ donor if they can.

“There is nothing in medicine that is as miraculous as an organ transplant,” Movahedi said “That’s only possible with the generous gift of donors and their families.”

Movahedi says organ transplants have come a long way in the last decade, patients survive longer and organs last longer.