The following is a letter from a donor
mother to NJ Sharing Network

Hello,

My son, Derek, died due to a closed head injury in 1995 at Robert Wood Johnson Hospital, New Brunswick. The 10th anniversary of his passing is less than a month away. A number of Derek's organs were recovered on 7/6/95, the day he passed. He was only 18 years old.

Would you please be able to give us an update as to how all the recipients of Derek's organs are doing today? We have heard from one man who received Derek's heart, and we know that he's been able to enjoy a longer life, with more grandchildren. My husband and I would like to know how that recipient is doing, as well as all the others. We do realize that a lot can happen in 10 years, and while we hope that everyone who benefited from Derek's donations are still doing well, we recognize there are no guarantees in life, so please let us know all the information that you can.

I guess I would say we want to know this information so that we can continue to feel SOMETHING positive to the question we had at the time Derek lay dying, and we were considering donating Derek's organs: that was, "how do we make sense of such an incredibly senseless event?" Donation was the only answer; it took us only minutes to decide that, and it would be the same, today.

I can't express what we felt when we heard from Derek's heart recipient; it was realizing that, even though this was just a muscle, each time this grandfather picked up a grandchild he might never have known, our son's heart was beating right near that grandchild's heart; and, not only was this grandfather enjoying the life and love of his family and grandchildren, but

they were enjoying him, as well; what an incredible, "sensible" answer to such a senseless happening! So, the years that Derek's heart recipient has lived longer has given us some of that positive feeling, that feeling that something right was done. Please help us know more about the other recipients.

Thank you for your time, your anticipated attention to this request, and for all the work you do.

Sincerely yours,

Selena
Donor Mother

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