Be a Donor: A Special Girl Tells Us Why

Today I'm sharing a very special guest post from 12 year old Sarah Edge. I was contacted by her mom, who not only is a This Mom Loves supporter, but was also my high school French teacher. (Knowing that I went on to complete my university degree in French and began my career teaching the subject, you'll understand that she had an important influence on me!)

I am very happy to be able to share Sarah's message with you here today, and I'll let her take it from here.

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I am 12 years old now. I love riding horses and have won quite a few ribbons.

But I almost died when I was very little. I started out okay, then went into heart failure when I was 6 weeks old. I had to have a heart transplant when I was 18 months old, after living at the Hospital for Sick Children for 3 1/2 months.

(That's also Sarah, at age 5, on the poster!)

I am doing really well now. I have been to the Canadian Transplant games twice. It was awesome to make so many friends there, and see so many kids and grownups that have been saved by an organ transplant. I love to swim and kayak. But horseback riding is my favorite thing of all. It's so much fun and also keeps me healthy. I have to take good care of this precious heart, because I am so lucky to have it.

I also needed 66 units of blood when I was sick, so I really want to convince more people to donate blood and to register to be an organ donor.

ANYONE WHO WOULD ACCEPT AN ORGAN FOR HIM OR HERSELF OR A LOVED ONE SHOULD REGISTER.

When I first realized that some perfectly healthy organs don't get used, I was shocked. I just couldn't imagine putting something in the ground that could save 8 lives! After all, we're supposed to recycle! :P

Nobody knows when somebody we love might need an organ transplant. I sure hope that if they do, that all of the people who pass away that could give an organ will decide to donate. I asked my mom what it was like to be hoping somebody else's child died so that I could live, but she explained that it's not like that at all. Bad things happen all of the time, she just hoped and prayed that no organ would be wasted, and if one was available, they would decide to help me live.

So please take the time to register. Just grab your health card and you can do it right here! If you think you've already registered, you can check here to be sure. Please talk to your family too.

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Thanks so much for sharing your message, Sarah! 

Ontario residents can visit Sarah's Be a Donor page here to register, or confirm that you are already registered: https://beadonor.ca/sarah-edge-1