Thank you everyone for attending and allowing me to share the beautiful life and legacy of my daughter Allyson who is our hero.
Allyson was generous, kind, loving, and brave. These are just a few words that describe our daughter and sister to four siblings. Allyson’s greatest attribute was compassion, she served overseas on several mission trips and local missions in our community. She befriended a homeless man she passed daily on her way to work and became his friend. She brought him food, gift cards, a winter coat and gave him encouragement. In 2009 her high school administrators choose Allyson for their prestige’s award recipient called The Servants Heart because of her giving heart not only to her classmates but also to our community. Allyson loved to travel and was the best friend to her dog Sadie.
Allyson was diagnosed with epilepsy at a young age but was well controlled with medications. However, that October Allyson was being treated inpatient for recurring seizures. I received a call from the attending physician at Wake Med Hospital that during a seizure she aspirated and went into cardiac arrest. Allyson’s cardiac arrest was prolonged, and she was placed on a ventilator in the ICU. My family was told she was in unstable critical condition and because of the length of her cardiac arrest there wasn’t much hope of full recovery. We prayed and stood beside Allyson for days until we received the heartbreaking diagnoses that she would never recover. The grief and pain of the death of your child is so profoundly deep, but because of Allyson life and death, we have learned to love deeper and be more compassionate like her. Her love didn’t die with her, it lives on in us and in everyone she touched.
At 17 years old Allyson checked the blue heart at the DMV when she passed her driver’s test. I was with her on that big day and she told me later on “Mom if I was to die my wishes are to be an organ donor”. Allyson was also known in our family as the one who give the best gifts for birthdays and holidays. We knew on the day we received the heartbreaking news that our daughter was not going to recover, her wishes were to give the ultimate best gift of life, her organs.
An angel named Lorelei appeared in our lives from HonorBridge once Allyson’s wishes to be an organ donor were made known. Lorelei was our family support coordinator who walked besides us as we said goodbye to Allyson. She kept us informed each step of the way during the process of donating. During the two day wait before Allyson was removed from life support the staff at WakeMed Hospital and HonorBridge honored our daughter by sharing tributes and provided remembrance keepsakes for our family. Allyson was treated as a hero and honored with dignity. Lorelei was the person who shared to me that my daughter had passed away peacefully and quickly as she was removed from life-support during the organ retrieval. A few hours after retrieval Lorelei informed us that Allyson’s lungs, right and left kidney were off to three ladies somewhere in NC. Her words were to me ` “Your baby girl saved 3 lives on her way to heaven”. On Oct 30th each year since Allyson’s death, Lorelei receives a text from me in remembrance of Allyson and how special she became to our family which was the hardest day of our lives.
🌻On Oct 30th 2020 Allyson left this world a better place at the young age of 29🌻
Our first holiday without Allyson was very difficult as we missed her being part of our celebrations. I remember despite my broken heart and missing Allyson, on that day her three recipients were now healthy and sitting at the thanksgiving table with their families because of my daughter’s gift. In 2021 we met her lung recipient Dianna from Texas. There are no words to describe the emotions of listening with a stepscope to your daughter lungs breathing for another person. Dianna was 69 years old when she received Allyson’s gift of lungs. She was so worried before we met that we would be bothered by her age and we might have thought a younger person deserved Allyson’s lungs, We assured her that she was the perfect match and we were right, today Dianna’s O2 stays at 100%. Since Dianna received Allyson’s gift, she has continued to be healthy, watching her great and grandchildren grow-up and just recently her granddaughter received the gift of a kidney from a donor.
Angela, Allyson’s right kidney recipient is from Shelby NC . We recently met Angela and her family.Angela shared that Allyson's selfless act of donation saved her life. Allyson's decision gave her the freedom from the horrible effects from dialysis She shared she now has the second chance at life to with my family and friends. Angela continues to be healthy and enjoying the life she has been given by our daughter's gift.
Allyson’s gift not only saved her recipients lives but changed their lives. Allyson’s love of life will live in each of her recipients, this is exactly what she would have wanted and that gives us much comfort.
Thank you to the staff of Atrium Health Mercy for caring for your patients and your commitment to making the beautiful act of organ donation happen. From the first call to supporting LifeShare through the process of organ donation, this wouldn’t happen without you.
Thank you for listening and allowing me to share Allyson’s story and her final act of love. I hope my daughter ‘s story inspires you to sign up to be a donor. If you’ve already signed up, be like Allyson and make sure to share your wishes to your family. We are so grateful Allyson did, She is will always be our hero.
