Carolina Donor Services, the largest organ and tissue donation organization in the state, said it will move its headquarters from Durham to Chapel Hill.
The organization serves over 7.2 million people, 100 hospitals and four transplant centers throughout North Carolina and Virginia.
According to an Oct. 18 press release, the new building will be 50,000 square feet and house 70 of its 130 employees.
“Carolina Donor Services’ future building will be easily accessible from I-40 and centrally located between the four transplant centers of Vidant Medical Center in Greenville, Wake Forest Baptist Health in Winston-Salem, Duke University Medical Center in Durham and UNC Medical Center in Chapel Hill,” the release said.
Carolina Donor Services works to educate the public on organ donations and increasing the amount of registered donors to address the nearly 3,000 people currently awaiting organ transplants. Additionally, the company provides grief support to donor families.
Danielle Niedfeldt, president and CEO of Carolina Donor Services, said the company needed a larger headquarters.
“We identified several years ago that we had outgrown our space in Durham,” Niedfeldt said. “It has been quite a process trying to find the right space.”
Niedfeldt said the company was searching for a peaceful setting for a headquarters because it had plans to build a memorial garden in tribute to the company’s donors.
“We had been searching around Research Triangle Park, and one of our staff members, Maria Palmer, who is a family support specialist, was a member of the town council and was aware of the Enterprise Zone,” Niedfeldt said. “She made the initial connection for us, and we are so grateful.”