Roxanne Willnow died of a brain aneurysm in 2006. In her death, she was able to save six lives. Since then my sister and I have been on a mission to honor our sister’s legacy and to promote organ donation, as it has given us a sense of comfort and helped us along our grief journey. In 2009, we met Willie Washington, one of Roxanne’s kidney recipient, and Rey Candia, Roxanne’s lung recipient, face-to-face.
And I recently spoke at a medical conference where I provided the following dedication: “The pain of her loss is great. It still surfaces, especially when I prepare for sharing her story like this. But then I’m reminded of the gift of life she gave. And it saddens me to know that her recipients… our family even could have been robbed of that hope, that life that springs from death, because her medical team didn’t know, was uncertain or maybe didn’t understand all the aspects of organ donation. I challenge you today to learn as much as you can about organ donation, and if you do have that unique opportunity to witness the raw reverence of organ donation, then you will have your own transition from learning to knowing. And then think of my sister Roxanne and know that when all you can do can’t save them… when there is nothing more you can do, remember, there is something else that you can do. And that is to give the hope of life to a patient waiting desperately on the list but also to give families like mine who are experiencing this loss a silver lining that allows them to continue to celebrate the life of that person for many years to come.”