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InSights

Donor Family Story: Michelle DeHart

Michelle DeHart loved life and lived life to its full potential. She traveled to many places, and in her last year of life, she was able to visit her favorite destinations with her husband Tim, embark on a cross-country RV road trip with her daughter Samantha, and then help plan and witness her daughter Cassidy’s wedding.

Michelle battled lung cancer for 8 years, but she never let it hold her back. She loved running, yoga, going on evening walks with her husband and dogs, camping, gardening, sunflowers, fishing, shopping, traveling, beach trips, hiking, nature, talking with her many best friends and family, as well as caring for her pets and grandpets. She cherished her husband and daughters more than anything and constantly expressed how proud she was of them.

Michelle was a beautiful soul who could light up a room with her smile. She loved making everyone feel special, as if they were the most important person in the world. Her caring nature led her to make it her mission to encourage, inspire, and be a friend to others going through cancer.

Michelle had a genuine passion for giving. Whether it was mentoring those fighting cancer, dedicating all her free time to making people feel cherished, or creating delightful surprises for her husband, daughters, and son-in-law on occasions like Christmas, Birthdays, Easter, and Valentine’s Day. She made every event special. She wanted everyone around her to feel like the most important person in the world. Even after her passing, she was able to give through her cornea donation. For that, we are grateful.

To the recipient of her donation: We will always think of you and pray for you. Our Michelle was selfless and loved fiercely. She saw so much beauty in this world, even through the most difficult times. She was a shining light to anyone who met her. She loved to quote, “Live the life you love, love the life you live.” Thank you for carrying her with you.

Michelle leaves behind a legacy of love, kindness, and selflessness. The world is undoubtedly a better place because of people like Michelle. May her memory continue to live on in the hearts of those who knew and loved her, and may her example of love and generosity continue to inspire others.

Wendy and Tim’s Story, Part 2

The following is the second in a two-part story of the special connection between the family of tissue donor, Tim Page, and the recipient of his donated corneal tissue, Wendy Bolling.

The following is the second in a two-part story of the special connection between the family of tissue donor, Tim Page, and the recipient of his donated corneal tissue, Wendy Bolling.

Timothy Nathaniel Page, Jr., was a loving person. He loved his family — his father, his mother, his sister and his four daughters and nieces and nephews. He loved food. He loved to tell jokes. He always had a smile on his face. He loved the Lord. And he loved people.

“To meet him was to know him,” says his mother, Sararecia Long. “He was a funny, bubbly person and was well-liked.” Although his life changed when his father passed away, he tried to stay strong, and made sure to be present in his daughters’ lives. TJ and his sister had a bond like no other. “I love my son. And nothing would ever change that,” she adds.

According to Sararecia, Tim and his sister, Teioyannah Page, were very close. And she is glad that they were able to share that bond over the years. “My birthday in 2021 was the last time I saw him,” says Sararecia.

A month later, Tim passed away. However, his loving spirit lives on through the wonderful memories of him and through his decision earlier in life to be an organ donor. In fact, it didn’t take long for that act of selfless generosity to make a difference in someone else’s life.

Only weeks after Tim’s passing, his cornea tissue was used to help restore Wendy Bolling’s vision through life-changing transplant surgery.

Wendy, who had struggled with her vision nearly her entire life, was able to regain her independence and was inspired to reach out through Miracles In Sight to express her gratitude for what this amazing gift had made possible for her.

While donor families can and often do choose to share stories of their loved ones, Tim’s mother was interested to know that her son’s choice to be an organ donor had been able to make a difference for someone. And with Wendy eager to get in touch, Sararecia and Teioyannah agreed to talk with her.

Tim’s family and met Wendy (along with her mother) in October 2023, nearly two years after he passed away and made the gift that restored Wendy’s sight. The group shared lunch at a popular restaurant in Burlington, NC, enjoying a beautiful afternoon together and forming a special relationship that Wendy and Sararecia intend on nurturing for years to come.

“The morning before we met, I was a nervous wreck,” says Wendy. “But it was like we had known them for years. They are wonderful people. I can never thank them enough.”

“To say that it was a blessing would be an understatement,” says Sararecia. Our family would like to thank Miracles In Sight for standing by us and guiding us through this difficult transition. May God forever bless you.

If you want to read more about Wendy’s experience as a transplant recipient, you can find her story in Part 1 here.

Donor Family Story: Dorcus Knuckles

You wanted to know about my mother. She was a beautiful and kind woman. She also was a God-fearing woman and never knew a stranger. She would carry a conversation with you, like she had known you her whole life. 

She had a heart of gold and would do anything to help a person in need. I think coffee was her favorite drink, lol. She has seven kids and a beloved cat smoky that truthfully was just like her 8th kid. That was who our beloved mother was.

Thank you for giving us the chance to tell you about her and letting her be a donor. She would have been so happy to be able to help someone else. 

Donor Family Story: Emily Beyea

Emily Beyea was only 10 years old when she passed away. However, in that time she managed to spread a lifetime of love, caring, joy and silliness throughout her world. “She was a sassy, outspoken, beautiful, activist, who saw the world as it should be… and saw the best in people,” says her mom, Tyler.

Emily’s love for helping others made her family’s choice to donate her organs and eye tissue an obvious one.

From an early age, she found many causes to get involved with, from sea turtle care to national park conservation to polar bear protection. She was a regular volunteer at the nonprofit Tyler works for, which feeds children at risk for hunger. Emily even created an “adopt-a-thon” there where each child could “adopt” a stuffed animal — most of which were from her own collection.

She loved the sand and the sea, enjoying vacations with her mom, dad (Bill) and older brother (Billy) to Jockey’s Ridge in the Outer Banks. And she was always joking, making funny videos and talking with anyone she met. “She was the silliest person you would ever meet,” Tyler explains. “Emily just loved doing simple things. She brought so much brightness into the world.”

Although an undiagnosed food allergy took her life, Emily lives on in many ways through the immeasurable amount of compassion, happiness and generosity she inspired around her. Emily’s family still comes across funny video clips of her that she didn’t get around to sharing with them. They continue to contribute to causes she supported, and they draw strength from knowing that she would want them to keep reaching out to help others. “It can be hard to get out of bed some days,” says Tyler. “But I know Emily would be none too pleased if I didn’t.”

Because of how Emily lived to help people, the decision to donate wasn’t even a question. Of course, it is what Emily would have wanted them to do. And it provides them with some measure of comfort to know that her eyes and heart have made a life-changing difference for others.

“Knowing there are people out there who see and live through her, helps so much in our healing,” says Tyler. “Her expressive eyes, who saw the world in a different way, full of wonder and whimsy, and her huge heart, used to love and be loved by all.”

The heartbreak of losing their daughter led Tyler and Bill to start a local chapter of Compassionate Friends, a support group and network for parents who have lost children. The couple is also active in allergy awareness and organ donor organizations. “The lessons Emily has taught us are: Be Kind, Live Simply and Be Silly,” Tyler adds. “This is how we try to get through each day without her.”

Donor Family Story: William Chapman

William Chapman (Willie) is my Husband. He is a Loving, Funny, and respectful guy. That I truly love a lot. We knew each other more than 20yrs. Before we settle down. Got married in May 15, 2009. He is also an Uncle and the Baby Brother, to 5 Sisters and 1 Older Brother. In which, He will be Loved and Missed a lot.

Wendy and Tim’s Story, Part 1

Wendy Bolling began struggling with her vision early in life. When her sight took a turn for the worse in 2021, she had corneal transplants that gave her back her independence and led to the start of an amazing relationship with the family of the donor, Timothy Page, jr., who made her gift of sight possible.

Wendy remembers wearing glasses when she was in third grade, and later having to wear hard contact lenses due to her severe astigmatism. When she was 19 years old, she had Radial Keratotomy (RK)* surgery, which successfully improved her vision. However, 20 years later her vision dramatically changed, becoming as bad as it had been before her RK surgery.

“My vision did a 180,” Wendy explains. “My corneas were so distorted there was not a good prescription that would allow me to see clearly. Everything, even with glasses, always looked distorted or fuzzy.” In 2020, she tried new scleral lenses which helped but were uncomfortable and hard to maintain.

Then in July 2021, a bacterial infection began to rob Wendy of what vision she had left. By August, she was essentially blind and in constant pain. The infection had made daily life extremely difficult. Not only could she not drive or work, she suffered severe migraines that forced her to be in a dark, quiet room. Her mother moved in with her to help. “If was hard to have to depend so much on others,” she adds.

Thanks to her doctors at Duke University Eye Center, medication slowly cleared up the infection. But it became apparent that Wendy would require corneal transplants in both eyes to regain her sight.

“When the doctor told me I would need corneal transplants, my heart sank,” she says. “I thought ‘oh, my gosh, what if they don’t take, what if it doesn’t work and I am never going to see again?’ I was so nervous, but I knew I had the best doctor. And he would make sure it all went well.”

The transplant on her left eye was done in late October and four days later, Wendy was already seeing more clearly than ever. “It was remarkable! To be blind and receive the gift of sight again… I was so grateful that it is hard to even put into words!”

The transplant on her right eye was done in early January with the same positive results. By March, Wendy was able to drive, work a full day and live her life again. “I felt as though I was given another chance,” she says.

Like many transplant recipients, Wendy was inspired by the gift she received to reach out in gratitude to the families whose loved ones had made her miracle possible through eye donation. With the donor family’s permission, Wendy was able to get in touch with Tim’s mother, Sararecia Long, as well as his sister, Teioyannah Page.

Wendy and Tim’s family, including his mother, his sister and his daughters, met for a beautiful afternoon this past October. And when they met, “it was like we had known them for years,” says Wendy. “They are wonderful people. I can never thank them enough.”

For Tim’s mother, the opportunity to connect with Wendy and to know that her son had made a difference in someone’s life was more than a blessing. “To say that it was a blessing would be an understatement,” says Sararecia. “I love my son. He was a loving person — loved his family, loved his daughters, loved the Lord. And he was well liked… to meet him was to know him.”

Wendy and Sararecia both agreed that they should get together every year. However, they both doubted that they would be able to wait that long to see each other again.

Read more about Tim in the upcoming Wendy and Tim’s Story, Part 2.

*Radial Keratotomy (RK) is a surgical procedure designed to re-shape the cornea to improve the patient’s vision.

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