By Teresa Hicks, Times-News
You don't have to rush into a burning building.
You don't have to jump into a raging river, either. You don't even have to take a class in CPR to become a hero by saving someone's life.
When a person agrees to become an organ donor, the effects of that decision are far-reaching.
"Seven different people's lives can be saved, and over 50 more can be improved through tissue transplants," said Kim Kennedy, senior public education coordinator for Mountain Region Donor Services.
And while it's easy to see how organ donation benefits those in need of a transplant, Kennedy understands firsthand that the benefits extend far beyond the recipient's medical miracle.
Kennedy's husband died in November 2003 after suffering a brain aneurysm and donated life-saving organs to three different people.
"One of Jim's kidneys was transplanted to a lady in Memphis who is 52 years old, and she had been waiting for a kidney for almost three years," said Kennedy. "His other kidney went to a 45-year-old lady in Nashville, and his liver was also transplanted in Nashville to a 50-year-old gentleman."
"It has been a blessing to me," she said. "Jim was 43 years old, and none of us saw this coming. It's a terrible tragedy in our lives, and it's the darkest time I've ever experienced.
"But through organ donation, three people are alive because of my husband's giving heart. And that's the way Jim lived his life - he was always giving to others. Even if he didn't have it to give, he'd find a way. So this is a way to honor him. It gives us comfort, it gives us hope for the recipients, and it gives us a ray of light in a very dark time."
Reprinted with permission from the author and Kingsport Times-News. |
JIM'S STORY