Real stories about what is possible when you #SayYES.
Son remembered for his selfless heart
Zachary Kelly had the biggest heart and was the type of person who would give you his last $5, so it was no surprise to his family and friends that he would also want to be an organ donor. His mother Melanie Kelly recalls the day she took Zack to get his learner’s permit when…
Son’s dream of helping others realized through organ and tissue donation
For his first Halloween, Robin Buritica Carvajal dressed up as a surgeon. His smile was beaming as he posed in his hospital scrubs for a photo. He was only 15 months old at the time and too young to realize his dream of becoming a doctor one day. Robin, who liked to be called Junior,…
In a father’s words: Steph had a remarkable life.
Billy Mutter reflects on his daughter Stephanie Green’s remarkable life for Father’s Day. Father’s Day! What a wonderful day of recognition for all fathers. As my seven-year-old granddaughter recently told me, Father’s Day is “the official time that us kids get to hang out and spend time with our father and grandfathers.” I personally love…
Lights, camera, transplant! A mission to help Hollywood get organ donation right
The scene opens in a hospital room. Lights fade, cue cards flash and cameras roll as a doctor walks in to tell a family the bad news – their loved one is dying but his organs can still be used to… CUT! Of every inaccurate organ transplant scene in Hollywood, that’s the one Tenaya Wallace…
In a mother’s words: My son. My hero.
Kristie Legg shares the story of her son Matthew Anthony Legg, Jr. Matthew passed when he was five years old and saved lives through donation. On April 1, 2008, my husband and I received distressing news at our ultrasound. We would be referred to a specialist at UVA the next day. I remember someone thinking…
A tiny miracle: Powhatan infant gets a new heart
For Chuck and Amanda Slate, watching their infant being taken in for a heart transplant was all the harder because he looked fine. “It was really emotional,” Amanda said. “Here we have a baby who seems pretty normal on the outside but he has this huge life-threatening condition and we’re handing him over to swap…
Norfolk Academy alum remembered for service and laughter
Kyle Hutchins was only 22 when he died but the outgoing young man had already inspired all who knew him– starting from the time he was a small child and continuing on even beyond his death. “He was a lively, outgoing, personable and compassionate kid and he was always like that,” said his father, Tom.…
“Heartbroken, but not broken”
Jaime and Jack McKinley had been at VCU Medical Center for two days when they called their teenaged sons Grayson and Finn to ask them how they felt about organ donation. Despite the stunning grief and shock of the past few days as the family learned that their 10-year-old son Sawyer would never wake up…
The “Aha” Moment: Kidney recipient reflects on the gift of life
Marquis had never liked going to the doctor. Growing up, he avoided it at all costs. Thinking back, he supposes it had something to do with witnessing kidney disease sicken his aunt until it eventually claimed her life. Ever since her death, Marquis avoided any sort of medical facility, figuring that no news is good…
Norfolk Preacher Demystifies Organ Donation through Outreach
Your loved one or yourself is already gone but someone else, another person, they can actually live,”Pastor Gloria Newsome-Brickhouse wasn’t always an organ donation advocate. In fact, organ donation wasn’t really on her radar until a deacon at her church invited her to attend a seminar for the blind about 10 years ago. “They kept…