September is National DMV Appreciation Month; an observance created by Donate Life America to recognize and thank Departments of Motor Vehicles (DMVs) across the country for their vital role in supporting the Donate Life mission. Each year, Donate Life America, Donate Life New York State and member organizations like ours express gratitude through special events and initiatives designed to show appreciation for DMV staff and their ongoing commitment to saving and healing lives through eye, organ and tissue donation.
This September, The Eye-Bank’s Hospital and Community Liaison Team scheduled special “appreciation visits” to DMVs in our local service area. Joined by mission-connected volunteers, they delivered care packages of snacks and drinks to express The Eye-Bank’s gratitude to DMV frontline staff for the important role they play by enrolling New Yorkers in the New York State Donate Life Registry during licensing and vehicle registration transactions.
Last year, on October 23, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that for the first time, more than 50 percent of the eligible New York population had registered to become eye, organ and tissue donors.
“This is a very important milestone for New York and the thousands of New Yorkers who are waiting for a life-saving organ transplant,” Governor Hochul said. “It is the result of dogged efforts by advocates and my colleagues at the Departments of Motor Vehicles and Health to raise awareness about the never-ending need for organ and tissue donors. Making that decision to provide the gift of life to someone else is a great example of the giving spirit of New Yorkers.”
About 90 percent of donor registrations in New York State take place in a DMV setting. And our registry has grown significantly in recent years, thanks in part to strong support from DMV leadership. This year, New York State Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Mark J.F. Schroeder was awarded the Donate Life America and American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators “2025 Region 1 Innovation Award” for his work to implement and improve donor registration initiatives in New York’s state-run DMV offices.
Special thanks to all DMV staff members for their hard work and advocacy. They are valuable members of the Donate Life community and the eye banking community. Together, we are helping restore sight to New Yorkers in need.