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DID YOU KNOW that February 14 is not only Valentine’s Day, but also National Donor Day? It’s a celebration where everyone is encouraged to share the love by saying “yes” to saving lives through organ donation!
Organ donation impacts countless people in our community, including liver transplant recipient Allie Herr and donor hero Brook Peterson.
Allie Herr was a very sick baby. Her life was consumed with countless medications, injections, feeding tubes, and central lines. Her skin and the whites of her eyes were extremely jaundiced. She had a huge, distended abdomen with tiny extremities. Allie’s body was shutting down, and she was in desperate need of a liver transplant.
Allie was born with biliary atresia, a rare disease that blocks the flow of bile from the liver to the gallbladder. “She had absolutely no quality of life,” Allie’s mom, Jenny, said. “It was an emotional rollercoaster.”
Allie used sign language to communicate because liver failure caused developmental delays. At two years old, she weighed only 15 pounds, and she would sleep up to 20 hours a day because her energy was nonexistent. “The hope for a liver diminished, and I was preparing myself to lose a child. Death was literally knocking at our door,” Jenny said. “Every night, we would put her to bed and pray for just one more day with her.”
But everything changed on January 21, 2006. After one year and nine months on the waiting list, two-year-old Allie received a life-saving liver transplant.
When Allie woke up after her surgery, the first thing Jenny noticed were the bright whites of Allie’s eyes—they were no longer jaundiced. As Allie recovered, her energy and appetite increased, her distended abdomen became nonexistent, and she started walking and talking. “It was amazing. It was like life was coming back into her every single day,” Jenny said.
Fast forward 17 years, and Allie’s energy supply is seemingly endless, and she is grateful every day for the gift she received. “It’s unbelievable to see how sick I was back then and how healthy I am today. Without organ donation, I would not be here,” Allie said. “If I met my donor family, I would give them a big hug. Obviously, the words ‘thank you’ are not enough, but my family and I are forever grateful for my second chance at life.”
Allie is alive today because of someone like Brook Peterson.
Brook had a way with people. The outgoing Bowling Green High School senior had countless friends and possessed a unique ability of making everyone feel comfortable around her.
Brook’s mom, Jean, said her daughter easily made connections with people from all walks of life. “She didn’t care who you were, what you looked like, what you did—if she liked you, she liked you and she would be there for you no matter what,” Jean said. Brook also made an impact on the softball field. She played on Bowling Green High School’s team and the SGS Magic travel team. With more than 10 years under her belt, Brook’s main position was catcher, but she had the talent to play first base, second base, shortstop, and outfield, too.
Brook’s dad, Dave, admired Brook’s athletic ability as well as her intelligence. “She would sit in math class and get upset when her teacher couldn’t get the lesson across to the class,” Dave said. “The teacher would say to Brook, ‘If you can do it better, go ahead,’ and she would. Brook helped her classmates understand it.”
One night, Brook wanted to go to a friend’s house for a bonfire, but Dave told her she couldn’t go because it was too late and too far. The next day, he went to talk to Brook about it, and she said with her palm in the air, “Dad, the discussion is over. I’m done.” Dave wasn’t surprised by that response because he said Brook always had to have the last word.
August 22, 2008 is a date forever engrained in Dave and Jean’s memories. Brook was on her way to meet with her guidance counselor when she got into a car accident and passed away.
But in true Brook fashion, she had the last word. That day, she saved three lives through organ donation.
Jean remembered a conversation she had with Brook when Jean renewed her driver’s license a few months earlier. “I said ‘no’ to organ donation, and she said she wanted to be a donor. She asked me why I wouldn’t want to be a donor if it could help someone else out,” Jean said. “That stuck in my head and made the decision to donate a lot easier for me. I’m grateful we had that conversation.”
One year later, the Petersons saw the magnitude of that decision when they met Jim, Brook’s kidney recipient. “I told Jim I was glad he was doing great, and we were able to see something good come out of something bad,” Dave said.
Dave and Jean had an immediate connection with Jim and felt like they had known him for years. They keep in contact with Jim, and they consider him a part of their family.
Dave and Jean are grateful that their sociable, stubborn, generous daughter continues to make a difference. “Organ donation gives us something positive to lean on when times get rough,” Jean said. “Brook touched a lot of people.”
To learn more about organ donation or to say “yes” to saving lives, visit lifeconnection.org.
Kara Steele is Director of Community Services for Life Connection of Ohio. ✲
