Executive Leadership

Joseph Ferreira

President & Chief Executive Officer

Joe Ferreira began his role as the Chief Executive Officer and President of Nevada Donor Network in April 2012.

Ferreira brings years of experience and expertise in the organ procurement field. He spent 14 years at Life Alliance Organ Recovery Agency in Miami, Florida where he served as the Director of Clinical Operations for seven years, and is certified in all aspects of the organ donation and recovery process.

Ferreira has a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology and Immunology and an MBA, with a specialization in Healthcare Administration and Policy, from the University of Miami. He serves as a coach for the Art and Science of Leadership Program at the Wharton School and Fox School of Business.

Ferreira has served as a member-at-large on the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO) Executive Committee, and is the President of AOPO (2020-2021). He is a certified member of the National Association of Healthcare Quality (NAHQ), a certified faculty member of the North American Transplant Coordinators Organization (NATCO), and a past board member of the Nevada Chapter of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE). He has served as the Chairman of the Procurement Council for AOPO and as an at-large representative on four committees for the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS).

Ferreira is a published author and speaker on organ donation. He has presented at conferences and meetings around the world. He consults internationally and has provided guidance to several foreign governments on the establishment or improvement of organ donation and transplant systems based on the U.S. model. He was also the recipient of the Kruger Award for 'Outstanding Professional- Transplant Services' by the Transplant Foundation in Miami.

Jason Mahfood

Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer

Jason Mahfood served as Nevada Donor Network’s (NDN) Board Treasurer prior to accepting the role of Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in 2014.

Mahfood has vast financial expertise, with a focus on long-term integration of best practices and prevailing standards to ensure timely compliance. He directed financial operations as Assistant Controller and Controller for Capital Regional Medical Center and Coral Gables Hospital in Florida. Mahfood served as the Associate Vice President of Finance for the University of Miami Hospital prior to becoming CFO, of Town and Country Hospital in Tampa and Wuesthoff Health System in Melbourne.

Mahfood has a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from Florida State University, Tallahassee and a Master of Healthcare Administration from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. As CFO, he uses his extensive knowledge and skill to lead NDN to unparalleled financial growth and success. In addition to his role at NDN, he is currently the Finance Chair for the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO).

Tyre Gray

Chief Administrative Officer

Tyre L. Gray, Esq. is a charismatic thought leader with more than 20 years of experience leading teams across the consulting, tourism, legal, and nonprofit sectors. Known for his distinctive laugh and inclusive approach to leadership, he is widely recognized for bringing people together to solve complex challenges and build mission-driven organizations.

He currently serves as Chief Administrative and Legal Officer for The Donor Network, a multi-state operator of organ procurement organizations that recently established the South Florida Donor Network. In this role, he helps guide the organization’s legal, strategic, and operational initiatives to expand organ donation and transplantation across the regions it serves.

Prior to joining The Donor Network, Gray served as President of the Nevada Mining Association, where he led the organization and its member companies through the unprecedented challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, helping maintain operational continuity for one of the state’s most vital industries.

A native of San Diego, Gray became a devoted fan of the Miami Heat during the team’s inaugural season. His professional journey began in the classroom as a teacher at an at-risk learning academy, an experience that shaped his lifelong commitment to service and leadership. He later pursued a legal career, graduating at the top of his law school class and passing the bar exams in California, Arizona, and Nevada in just 368 days.

Gray’s connection to the mission of organ donation is deeply personal. Diagnosed with chronic kidney disease in his mid-20s, he received a life-saving kidney transplant on September 12, 2012. The transplant was facilitated by the Nevada Donor Network—one of the organ procurement organizations now operated by The Donor Network—creating what he often describes as a full-circle moment. Today, he helps lead the broader organization connected to the very team that helped save his life, an experience that continues to fuel his passion for expanding access to transplantation and advocating for donors and recipients alike.

He lives in Henderson, Nevada with his children, Adonis and Reign.

Elizabeth Shaller

Chief Operating Officer

As the Chief Operating Officer , Elizabeth Shipman is responsible for overseeing, directing, and managing family, clinical, surgical and hospital services operations for the nonprofit organization. She has been leading NDN’s Organ Services team since 2021 as NDN’s Director of Organ Services.

As a native Floridian, she began her career in transplant at Life Alliance Organ Recovery Agency in 2013. She found her passion for serving others through organ donation and transplantation. Shipman joined Miami Transplant Institute (MTI) in 2016 and continued to grow in her career advancing into management roles including the development of the in-house organ intake center and organ perfusion program at MTI.

Shipman serves on the Vascularized Composite Allograft Transplantation (VCA) Committee for the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. She is also very involved within Region 5, the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO), and the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS). 

Shipman obtained a Bachelor of Science in Business Marketing from Florida State University and a Master of Business Administration, specializing in Health Care Administration from Florida International University.

Miles Lanning

Chief Quality Officer

As the Chief Quality Officer, Miles Lanning serves as an advocate and resource of quality, performance improvement, regulatory compliance and risk management throughout Nevada Donor Network and its partners.

As a Colorado native, Miles graduated from the University of Colorado with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in economics and sociology. Miles started his career in the medical industry in Emergency Medical Services (EMS) as a paramedic in the Denver Metropolitan Area. Since 2004, Miles has led and provided quality assurance in blood, tissue and regulated donor testing.

Miles has successfully implemented and maintained quality systems that have fostered successful partnerships with his organization’s regulatory bodies. This also helps ensure his teams stay aligned with industry needs and standards. Miles has also developed professional relationships in the organ and tissue donation and transplantation communities whichallows him to better understand the quality expectations and needs of the heroic donors we serve, the partners who help make donation possible and ultimately, the grateful recipients of our heroic donor’s gifts.  

With whatever free time Miles has, you will more than likely see him on his bicycle or shuffling around his daughters to anything they are doing or participating in.  
 

Gordon Prouty

Foundation President

Gordon Prouty joined the Nevada Donor Network team as the Nevada Donor Network Foundation President in October 2024

Formerly the Vice President of Public Relations and Community Affairs at Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino, he oversaw media relations, publicity and community and government outreach for this iconic property, the home of Legendary Vegas Fun since 1969.

Gordon is active in the Las Vegas community as an emcee at various charity/awards events and has served as a board member for United Way of Southern Nevada, Las Vegas Business Academy, Cultural Diversity Foundation and most recently, Nevada Donor Network Foundation. He is also a member of the Vegas Chamber’s President Club, American Cancer Society’s CEO’s Against Cancer, Tech Impact Las Vegas Advisory Board and the Nevada Donor Network’s Gala committee.

Sara Levinson

Vice President of People, Culture + Development

Sara Levinson has been leading Nevada Donor Network’s (NDN) People, Culture + Development team since 2014 with oversight of the human resources, education and development functions. She started as the Director of Human Resources, and was promoted the Vice President of People, Culture + Development in 2023. Employee retention and a positive culture are two areas Levinson is most passionate about.

Prior to NDN, Levinson spent ten years in private medical practice and hospitals in employee relations and labor relations roles. Prior positions afforded her the opportunity to be involved in union contract negotiations for three hospitals and two separate unions.

Levinson still cheers on all Arizona State University teams as she graduated in 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in family and human development. She also holds two master’s degrees. One in human resources management and most recently, she earned her MBA through WGU-Nevada in 2019. Levinson also obtained her Professional in Human Resources from the HRCI in 2011, and her Senior Professional in Human Resources in 2020.

Levinson enjoys vacationing to any beach location with her husband and two younger children.

Leadership Roles:

2015-2016: AOPO Vice Chair -Human Resources Council

2016-2017: AOPO Chair – Human Resources Council

2020-2021: AOPO Annual Meeting Faculty

Current: AOPO Membership Committee Member

SHRM: 2010 Certification Vice President

Board Member of the Doral Academy of Nevada

Chris Johns

Vice President of Tissue Operations