2026 Chain of Life Challenge: Chain of Life Celebrates 20 Years with Youth at the Forefront
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Learning about organ and tissue donation at school
QUEBEC CITY, Oct. 8, 2026 /CNW/ -- Twenty years ago, Josianne Sirois suggested to her teacher that they build a website educating young people about organ donation. That idea sparked what would become Chain of Life. Today a teacher herself and one of this year's flag bearers, Josianne embodies what this anniversary is all about: the power of young people, and how education can save lives.
On October 16, 17 and 18, to mark World Organ Donation and Transplantation Day, Chain of Life invites everyone to celebrate its 20th anniversary by joining a climb led by those it has always believed in: young people. In 14 regions across Quebec, they will carry the flag to the summit and share what Chain of Life has taught them.
Students, families and teachers will climb side by side with transplant recipients and people waiting for a transplant, donor families, healthcare professionals and the volunteer police officers who transport organs. By joining them or donating, you'll help more young people learn about organ and tissue donation.
Our flag bearers: stories worth sharing, lives worth celebrating
For Thomas, organ donation brings back the laughter and comfort he shared with his grandmother. A liver transplant gave her 30 more years, and Thomas the chance to know her. For Olivia, it is the reason she is here at all: a transplant saved her mother Audrée's life, allowing her to later become a mother.
Leila and Charles want more young people to have the facts they need to make their own choices. Daria hopes to inspire people to look out for one another. Marily, a former student turned teacher, is eager to teach the program to her students.
Marc-André, a heart transplant recipient and father of four, will share the joy of watching his children grow up. Christine, who lived nearly 14 years free of dialysis thanks to her father's kidney, will carry the flag as she waits for a second transplant.
Coralie and Louis-Félix: two journeys joined at the heart
Coralie Lachance discovered Chain of Life last year. Now in Secondary 5, she dreams of becoming a heart surgeon. Louis-Félix Noel, 14, is waiting for a new heart. These flag bearers from Chaudière-Appalaches Sud met while filming the video for this year's Challenge.
She dreams of mending hearts; he is waiting for the one that will let him chase his dreams. Together, they show us what hope looks like.
Watch Coralie and Louis-Félix's video
Dr. Pierre Marsolais, honorary chair
An internist and intensivist, Dr. Marsolais has devoted over 40 years to organ donation in Quebec and has stood by Chain of Life since the first Challenge in 2015. He co-founded the Mission du Dr Marsolais, which supports donor families in need, and he visits schools to talk with young people.
"For me, that's where it all begins. Demystifying organ donation and educating families both start with the young people who discover Chain of Life at school."
– Dr. Pierre Marsolais
Education that trusts young people's judgment
Chain of Life's mission is not about convincing students to become donors. The program gives them the knowledge and the space to understand the issue, form their own opinion, make an informed choice and talk it over with their families.
Learning about organ donation also leads them to reflect on how precious and fragile life is, and why their own health matters. This approach speaks to their generosity, their solidarity and their sense of responsibility, to themselves and to others. By giving them the tools to understand, discuss and act, it becomes a strategic lever for prevention and public health.
Since 2006, more than 400,000 young people have taken part in the program. It is taught in over 100 high schools, mostly in ESL classes for students aged 15 to 17. Nearly 400 teachers and pedagogical consultants have been trained.
Watch "When Young People Lead"
Touching the heart to open the mind
"If there's one thing to remember about education, it's this: to open young people's minds, you must first touch their hearts. That conviction has guided us for 20 years. We are counting on organ donation education to engage our youth and start building a better-informed, more compassionate, more altruistic and healthier Quebec today," says Lucie Dumont, founding president of Chain of Life.
A mission that reaches beyond Quebec
From October 26 to 30, Lucie Dumont will be one of three judges on the Dragons' Den panel at the Canadian Society of Transplantation's annual scientific conference. Chain of Life has also weighed in on the WHO's draft global strategy on donation and transplantation, with a brief arguing that education, young people and families belong in it.
Support your region's flag bearers!
Now in its 12th edition, the Challenge remains Chain of Life's main annual fundraiser. Every registration and donation helps keep teacher training and teaching kits free, and helps bring the program to new schools.
Join your region's flag bearers on the climb, or support them with a donation.
For our 20th anniversary, let's celebrate alongside those we've always believed in: young people.
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SOURCE Chain of Life
Interview requests -- Zhenai Xiao, Media Relations Manager, 514-885-6682, [email protected]
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