A few months ago, I contacted several people and asked them if they would share their donation or transplant story with me. I want to share some of those stories starting with a little girl named Abbigail.

Abbigail’s father described her as a little girl with a big heart.  Like many four-year-old girls, she simply adored the Disney princesses, so she was in total bliss when her family was able to visit Disneyland during a trip to California for her uncle’s wedding.  It was a fantastic trip, and they enjoyed the time they were able to spend together as a family, laughing, taking pictures, and just being together.  At the time, they had no idea how treasured those memories in California and Disneyland would be.

 The day after they returned home, their lives drastically changed.  Abbigail’s dad, Marcus, left for his shift as an officer with a County Sheriff’s office. While Marcus was on patrol, a call came over his radio stating emergency crews were being sent to respond to a 911 call about a four-year-old who was not breathing and his address was given as the location.  

By the time Marcus reached his home, paramedics were already on the scene. Marcus learned that Abbigail had put a bouncy ball in her mouth and it had become lodged in her throat.  The emergency crew was able to dislodge the ball and had begun CPR but the situation was serious.  Abbigail was flown to Primary Children’s Medical Center where they would be better equipped to deal with this type of emergency. 

Upon arriving at Primary Children’s Medical Center, the medical staff determined that Abbigail was brain dead.  Marcus and Deborah were devastated. They were asked whether or not they wanted to consider organ donation.  “My wife and I discussed organ donation.  The thought of Abbigail being able to continue to help others through organ donation became somewhat of a comfort to us and we decided to give our consent,” said Marcus.  “The biggest thing about Abbigail was her heart, which she gave to anyone and everyone. There was comfort in knowing, that in the face of tragedy, our child was able to help others.”  

Considering her ‘big heart,’ it seemed fitting that Abbigail was able to donate her heart valves to someone in need.  Her kidneys and liver were also donated. 

If you are not already signed up on the Utah Donor Registry, please consider doing so at www.yesutah.org.

Tags: donate life, donor registry, heart, kidney donation, kidney transplant, kidneys, liver, liver transplant, organ, organ donation, organ donor, transplant, utah, yes utah, yesutah

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