Organ recipients remember those who gave them a second chance

The Grand Island Independent | Harold Reutter

Organ recipient Susan Beaty describes the moment when she knew she would be receiving a new kidney during an Organ Donor Remembrance Ceremony on Monday afternoon at CHI Health St. Francis in Grand Island. April is National Organ Donation Month. Over 114,000 people in America are waiting for a life-saving organ transplant, and about 500 of them are from Nebraska. (Independent/Barrett Stinson)

People who gathered at Monday’s Donor Remembrance Ceremony at CHI Health St. Francis heard first-hand what the “gift of life” has meant to two people, Rory Thorpe and Susan Beaty, who each received kidney transplants.

Rory’s story was told by her mother, Amanda Gillham, who told how her daughter first became sick when she was a very young child. That illness affected her kidneys. But Rory seemed to regain full health; her kidneys also seemed to be perfectly healthy. However, Rory became ill again and the second time, she had to go on dialysis permanently. Amanda said Rory was also having problems with other organs as doctors searched for a correct diagnosis. Doctors at eventually discovered that Rory had atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome or a HUS. Continue reading

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from Donate Life Organ and Tissue Donation Blog℠ http://ift.tt/22bgMcL