About us

Founded in 1974, Southwest Transplant Alliance began by facilitating kidney recovery for Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas. That focused beginning grew into more than five decades of organ and tissue donation work, connecting the generosity of donors with patients waiting for a transplant.

Over those decades, STA developed relationships with hospitals and transplant centers across Texas. Its work expanded beyond coordinating donated organs and tissues to include donor-family support, community education, and collaboration to advance donation and transplantation.

In March 2021, STA announced the opening of its Dallas campus and The Legacy Center. Dedicated organ and tissue recovery spaces, family comfort areas, donor tributes, and a memorial garden brought clinical coordination and compassionate family support together. That investment in donors and families is part of the foundation GOLA carries forward.

TOSA’s history began in San Antonio on December 10, 1975, when South Texas Organ Bank was incorporated as a nonprofit. In 1977, it facilitated its first kidney transplant into a local recipient at Bexar County Hospital, an early milestone in a history of serving Central and South Texas.

In 1992, the Austin-based Central Texas Organ Procurement Program merged with South Texas Organ Bank, expanding its reach into Central Texas. In 1999, the organization adopted the name Texas Organ Sharing Alliance to reflect its broader service area and the partnerships that make donation and transplantation possible.

TOSA continued building that legacy with the opening of the Center for Life in 2020, the Center for Hope in Austin in 2023, and the celebration of its 50th anniversary in 2025. Across five decades, TOSA’s work has included organ recovery, compassionate care, grief support for donor families during the donation process, and public education about donation. This deep experience now helps shape GOLA.