Poetry Contest

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Submissions for the 2025 Poetry Contest are now closed. You can read all the poetry submissions and view the winners below.

The Donate Life Northwest Poetry Contest is designed to showcase your perspective on donation and transplantation, and to better understand what it means to you and your community. Whether it is a tribute to a donor family member who has passed, or a reflection of your joy at receiving a life-saving organ or tissue transplant, we hope that beautiful works of poetry can help capture part of the experience.

We encourage creativity! Feel free to submit poetry of all types-- lyrics, prose, poems, acrostic poems, haikus, sonnets, experimental, etc. However you wish to best express your feelings and experiences with organ, eye, and tissue donation and transplantation, we are excited to read.

The poetry contest launched in March 2025 and runs through our Summer Block Party on June 8th. At that event, the winner will be announced, along with people's choice voting. The winning poem will be featured in a DLNW digital campaign and will receive a $200 gift card. The people's choice winner will receive a $100 gift card.

2025 Winners

First Place: "a conversation" by Alysia Yamasaki
Alysia, a kidney recipient, says her poem is about "An interpersonal conversation a transplant recipient has with themself, knowing the sacrifice that was made for them to be alive. Acknowledging that there is heartache on both sides and not wanting to disappoint themselves but their donor too. How can they honor this person who saved them? But to live."

People's Choice: "You're Still Here" by Kristy Manuel
Kristy, a donor mom, says of her poem, "When our son died in a tragic accident, we decided to offer what we could to help others. It didn't surprise us that our son had also chosen to donate organs. This poem reminds me that through those donations, my son lives on and each donation honors his memory. Those who have chosen to learn about their donor, our son, have gotten to know him in a special way - like we do. "

2025-All Submissions

Rules & Guidelines for Entry

Be creative!
Poems must be the entrant's original work. AI-generated work is prohibited.
Poems must have a title and must not exceed 40 lines in length (excluding title).
No more than 3 submissions per person allowed.

Submission Process

Poems may be submitted electronically through our online form, below.
If you prefer to mail your poem in, you can send it to: Donate Life NW, PO Box 532, Portland, OR 97207
- Mailed in submissions must have a submission form included
All submissions must be submitted electronically or postmarked no later than Sunday, May 18, 2025.

Poetry Writing Resources

Need some help? Not sure where to start? Check out these selected resources to learn more about poetry and how to write your own poem.

How to Write a Poem: A Step-by-Step Guide, from Grammarly.com
Poetry 101: Learn About Poetry, Different Types of Poems, and Poetic Devices with Examples, from MasterClass.com
The Beginners Guide to Poetry, from Matrix Education
How to Write A Poem, Step-By-Step, from Writers.com
Video: How to Write a Poem, from ReedsyBlog
Video: Everything you need to write a poem (and how it can save a life), from TEDxTalks

Judging

Entries will be judged on creativity, impact, and originality by Donate Life Northwest. Selected poems will be open to public vote both through online voting as well as voting in-person at our Summer Block Party. The winning poem, as selected by Donate Life Northwest, will be featured in a DLNW digital campaign, and will receive a $200 gift card. The people's choice winner, as voted on by DLNW community members, will receive a $100 gift card.

Donate Life Northwest reserves the right to disqualify any entry that does not comply with these guidelines or is deemed inappropriate.

For more information, or with any questions, contact us at 503-494-7888 or info@donatelifenw.org.

Stories of Hope

— Lynn Beebe