Hundreds of present and former patients at Stanford and Lucile Packard Children's hospitals will gather on campus Friday afternoon for a reunion. All are organ transplant recipients.

"It's not just a reunion and celebration," Marge Burge, transplant social worker, said. "It's also a night to honor and bring awareness to the decision of those who, in the midst of their tremendous grief, made a decision to donate life. It's the ultimate gift, and everyone at our reunion is very, very thankful."

Some people will travel across the country to be at the reunion, including Brian Bronk from Indiana, who has run a marathon since receiving his new heart.

Others will have a shorter distance to travel. Elizabeth Craze, 26, lives and works in Palo Alto. In 1984, she was the first pediatric heart transplant at Stanford and Packard hospitals.

Peter Hanson, 4, of Menlo Park, will also be on hand. He was one of three Packard heart transplant recipients in a 36-hour period in 2006.

— Don Kazak