We spent the weekend in San Antonio, TX meeting Brea's donor's family and participating in a quilt ceremony to honor those who have died and donated the gift of life to others. The Texas Organ Sharing Alliance (TOSA) hosted the event and provided translators for us to communicate with our donor family.
When we arrived on Friday we met Salvador's family at the TOSA office. We met with his mother first. There were really no words needed when we met. I took her hand and placed it on Brea's chest so she could feel her child's heart beating in our daughter. She really wanted to hold Brea but as many of you know...Brea is not fond of letting anyone hold her except mommy and daddy BUT it was as if Brea knew who this lady was and after just a few minutes she warmed up to her and allowed her to hold her. We were shocked but thrilled! A few minutes later we met Salvador's two aunts, siblings and grandmother. They were all so sweet and really wanted to get to know Brea.
Saturday morning we attended the quilt ceremony. Brea participated in the service by lighting one of eight candles that represents the eight organs that can be donated when a loved one dies. As she walked down the aisle holding her candle the announcer read a short paragraph about Brea including her age, transplant date and a few of the things that she is able to do now that she has a healthy heart. The donor families then came forward one by one and pinned their quilt squares to the quilt panel as a paragraph about their loved one was read. It was a beautiful ceremony.
At the end of the ceremony the TOSA staff called us and our donor family forward and told the story of us meeting for the first time. Afterwards we met many, many transplant recipients who have written to their donor family but have never met them and we met many, many donor families who have never heard from those who received their loved ones organs. We didn't realize how unusual this opportunity truly was and it just makes us more grateful to have had this chance to tell Salvador's family in person how thankful we are that they made the decision to donate his organs and give life to others.
When the ceremony was over we went to lunch with his family. For three hours we talked (through TOSA translators). We learned so much about the special little boy that gave Brea the gift of life. We watched a video of him learning to walk and looked at pictures of him. His mother gave us a program from his funeral and photos. We gave her a heart shaped locket with a photo of Brea in one side and we left the other side empty so she could put a photo of Salvador in it. We showed the family pictures of Brea when she was in the hospital on the Berlin heart and life support. I think it was then that they truly understood what a difference their gift has meant to Brea. There were many times when no words were needed to know what the other was saying.
It was VERY hard for Salvador's mother to hear that Brea MAY need another heart transplant at some point. She said it would be like losing her child all over again. We told her that science and medicine changes daily and that no one truly knows what the future holds for heart transplant patients. Danny reminded her that none of us are promised tomorrow.
This weekend was a time for healing, hope and happiness. Oyuki (Salvador's mother ) told us that meeting Brea was very important in the healing process and she is truly happy to see how well Brea is doing. We left San Antonio with a great deal of hope after meeting other heart transplant patients who are doing so well.
As the weekend came to a close we promised to always be in touch. We are so grateful to the TOSA staff for translating for us and to Salvador's family for wanting to meet.
Here are a few photos from our trip...Enjoy!
