Matthew Heisler, 21, a student at the University of North Dakota, died from complications following a house fire. But, Matthew had signed up to be organ donor when he was 16 years old by checking the box on the form for getting his driver’s license.
His father explained to the boy that ‘if life ever slipped away from him, he would give life to someone else’.
Meanwhile, Tom Meeks, a veteran of the Vietnam war, had been waiting nearly three years for a lifeline, after he was diagnosed with a rare and fatal heart disease, reports WFMY News.
Now, eight month’s after Matthew’s death, his parents and younger sister, Casey, got to listen to Matt’s heart beat inside of Tom’s chest.
(WATCH the video or READ it from WFMY News2 *NOTE auto-playing audio on that page)
By checking the box, Matt helped 59 other people, including a 46-year-old woman who received one of Matt’s kidneys and a 61-year-old man who was saved when he received the liver.
Make sure you are registered as an organ donor in the US, by signing up with your state here (below the map).
Story tip from Kelly Harrington – Photo via family and Facebook