Blog posts from February, 2016

Teen’s death gives transplant miracle to Florida family

It was Amanda’s sister, Jessica, who first contacted Garrett on social media. Both families decided to meet and talk about the heart they now share.

Amanda’s dad said he keeps his connection to his daughter through Garrett. They’ve gone to sporting events, concerts, and a helicopter ride.

“We met that first day and this beautiful young man brought a stethoscope so that I could listen to his heart,” Amanda’s mom said.

Garrett’s mom took a picture showing Laurie, with her eyes closed, listening to Amanda’s heart through Garrett.

“You could just feel the love. The love of her child,” Susan said. “I could not have picked a better recipient than you.”

Liam Neeson talked about his wife Natasha Richardson’s death and how organ donation has brought his family solace after their loss.

“She was on life support,” he told “60 Minutes.” “I went in to her and I told her I loved her, said, ‘Sweetie, you’re not coming back from this, you’ve banged your head.'”
Neeson, 61, said he knew his wife and the mother of their two children would not recover.

“She and I had made a pact, if any of us got into a vegetative state that we’d pull the plug,” he said.
But he kept her alive long enough to bring her back to New York so that friends and family could say goodbye. Richardson died March 18, 2009.

“…Donated three of her organs, so she’s keeping three people alive at the moment … her heart, her kidneys and her liver,” Neeson told “60 Minutes.” “It’s terrific … and I think she would be very thrilled and pleased by that.”