The Garbage Man: A Life Worth Winning documentary details Robbie Donno’s journey from a Long Island garbageman to a humanitarian icon and showcases the transformative power of compassion and community engagement. Despite facing unfair accusations and challenges due to his Italian heritage and ties to the waste management business, Robbie rose to become a beacon of hope for children around the world.

Guided by the strong sense of community instilled from his father, Robbie joined the Rotary Club and used it as a platform for change.  In a pivotal moment he learned of efforts by the Ugandan Rotary to provide reconstructive plastic surgery for a child disfigured in a hyena attack.  Although the surgery was funded before action could be taken, it ignited his passion for helping children. So, when the Ugandan Rotary reached out a second time for a child in critical need of heart surgery he jumped into action, using his Rotary Club connections to bring the girl and her father to St. Francis Hospital in New York where she underwent successful surgery.  And thus 'Gift of Life,’ was born—a non-profit that provides life-saving surgery for children with congenital heart disease.   

This documentary tells his story, from garbageman to altruist, whose global impact has given over 50,000 children the ‘Gift of Life.’