Stories of Generosity and Triumph from the 2018 Transplant Games

Salt Lake City was recently the site of a six-day event known as the 2018 Transplant Games. From August 2nd through the 7th, over 6,000 transplant recipients, donors and families gathered to celebrate the gift of life through competition and to highlight the need for organ, eye, and tissue donors.

There are currently more than 114,000 patients awaiting a life-saving transplant, and 20 people die every day waiting for transplants that never happen. Add to this the fact that half a million people depend on dialysis to survive while they wait for available donor kidneys, and it becomes painfully obvious that organ and tissue donation should be a higher priority for the general public.

Besides raising awareness, the Transplant Games (begun officially in 1990), are a chance for everyone involved in the organ and tissue donation community to get together and celebrate those who have had their lives restored by transplants; those that have given the gift of life; and their families. It’s a life-affirming event if there ever was one, and as you might expect, it’s an event filled with stories of triumph, courage, and life-giving generosity of spirit.

Pennsylvania Family Exemplifies the Value of Giving

Meet Natalie and Mark Mirage, a daughter and father who both competed and won at the games. Their journey to Salt Lake City began in 2009 when Natalie was added to a kidney transplant list after a misdiagnosed illness sent her into end stage renal failure. After a three-year wait, she received a life-saving donor kidney and began her recovery — but the act of giving was by no means over. In honor of his daughter’s miracle gift of life, Mark donated a kidney to another woman awaiting a transplant, whose husband, in turn, donated his kidney to another woman in need of the life-saving donation. That’s three people who received the gift of life because one kind soul was thoughtful enough to be a donor. Small acts of generosity can have huge ripple effects.

Credit: Chestercounty.com

Ohio Woman Cheers on Son’s Organ Recipient

Dylan Flew died in a motorcycle accident in 2006 when he was just three years out of high school. His death was tragic, but Dylan’s story doesn’t end there. Dylan was a registered donor, and after his untimely death, 84 people received donor organs and tissue  — including Blase Budziac, who was the grateful recipient of Dylan’s liver.

The Flew family has met three of the five recipients of Dylan’s donor organs, and Kathi Flew, Dylan’s mother, describes an instant bond and a new extended family in the wake of tragedy: “We have recipient families who are more like a family than our own,” Flew said. “It’s humbling. … You automatically feel close to them.” It was in this spirit that Kathi Flew traveled to Salt Lake City to cheer on Budziak, an avid runner, as he took bronze in the 400-meter run. Organ donation can turn tragedy into triumph, and Dylan’s legacy lives on in the lives of everyone he was able to help by simply registering as an organ and tissue donor.

Consider Being an Organ Donor

If you’d like to register as an organ and tissue donor in your state, you can start the process on organ donor.gov. Most states allow you to choose which organs and tissues you’d like to donate, and you can easily update your preferences at any time. This is a quick and easy signup that could very likely save lives, and someone, somewhere will be eternally grateful for your kindness.

There are also a growing number of living donors, which has helped to address the shortage of donor kidneys. The need still far outpaces the supply of donor organs and tissue, but altruistic donation is becoming more popular and is saving lives. Learn more about becoming a living organ donor here.

I hope you’ll consider becoming a donor today. You really can give the gift of life, and your gesture can mean the world to someone who desperately needs a second chance.