My husband Ed and I were married after high school. We were blessed to become parents to our beautiful daughter Tracey on October 21, 1973. In 1992 we were excited to purchase a vacation home in the Poconos. Ed loved to travel, but he was happiest being out in nature hunting and fishing.
Our hearts grew bigger with the birth of our first grandson Erick in 1994. Life was good, no, life was great!
They say “it’s not what you take when you leave this world behind you, It's what you leave behind you when you go”. Ed left a loving legacy of hope to three families.
In November 1997, I received the phone call no one ever wants to receive. My husband was in an auto accident. Ed sustained severe head injuries in the accident. Ed was in Leigh Valley Hospital for 12 days. After 12 days, our family met with the doctors. Doctors told us they did all they could. Ed was brain dead. We made the decision to remove Ed from life support. We then spoke to Scott, a transplant coordinator from Gift of Life Donor Program. Ed was able to donate his liver, two kidneys, corneas and tissue. Ed’s gifts saved the lives of three people from Pennsylvania.
Ed’s death was sad, heart-breaking and tragic. I was in a really dark place for a really long time. About three years after Ed died, I started to attend Hearts of Gold meetings. Hearts of Gold is a donor family support group with the Gift of Life Donor Program. Attending Hearts of Gold meetings gave me hope that I could crawl out of the dark hole I was in. Meeting other donor families, who I could cry and laugh with, helped me begin to heal. I became a Gift of Life Volunteer and shared Ed’s personal story of donation to my co-workers, rotary clubs, schools and churches.
Ed was a wonderful, loving son, brother, husband, father and Poppy. Ed loved helping people and even after his death, he was able to help people by being a donor. I still love and miss my husband very much. I know through the gift of donation, something good came out of our tragedy. I know Ed didn’t just die. I know a part of Ed is living on.
On October 30, 2016, for the first time, 19 years after donation, our family met Dave and his beautiful family. Dave is Ed’s kidney recipient. Dave said “his health is perfect”. A true miracle and a reminder to donor families and recipients, it is never too late to meet.
I am so grateful for everyone in the Gift of Life organization. 27 years after Ed’s death, I keep his spirit and memory alive by volunteering with Gift of Life, walking in the DASH and attending the US Transplant Games. I purchased a t-shirt that says HONOR THE JOURNEY. The shirt is a reminder to honor our journey; mine and Ed’s.
