Neil O. DeFore – Donor

It was an ordinary Wednesday, March 27, 1996 when Neil left for work to deliver mail on his rural mail route.  He was about a mile from the Gracey post office when he became very ill.  He drove back to the post office and honked for help.  The clerk called an ambulance and then called me.

Neil had suffered an aneurysm and we were informed that he was brain dead.  A young man that we knew at the hospital approached my son to talk about the possibility of organ donation.  We knew that’s what Neil would have wanted, so KODA was called.

The transplant team arrived that night.  They were wonderful – so respectful and kind.

They guided us through the process with such dignity.

Neil’s legacy continues on through the lives he saved and improved.  A young lady received his liver and now has a second chance at life, and two older women received his corneas and now have the gift of sight. 

(Story shared by Neil’s family.)