Hannah Helps

This is a MUST READ!

 Life is always an adventure, and the past few days have been no exception. As is typical of “the way things go,” we were looking forward to attending an organ donor family event with our three boys last Friday, but on Wednesday, Micah started to get a sore throat and a fever. On Thursday evening we took him into Urgent Care to make sure that he didn’t have strep throat. The test result showed that he only had a common virus going around, and we were sent home to wait it out. We were happy that he didn’t have anything serious, but we were wondering WHY this type of thing had to happen right then. I mean, at least it could have waited until Saturday, right!?!?! Well, no, I guess not. Although we don’t know the reasons for this type of thing, we do know that we were able to meet some amazing medical staff that night, and we were able to share Hannah’s story with them after we made sure that Micah was all taken care of first. Maybe someone there just needed to hear her story?!? (As a side note: Knowing when and how to share our situation with Hannah is not always easy. That night I made the decision that, obviously, Micah’s health needed to be the focus of our visit, and I had no intention of distracting anyone from focusing on him. In fact, we even left the clinic and went and got gas before I felt guilty for not sharing her story with the staff and went back in to leave them with a brief explanation and the Hannah Story Pamphlets. We always get a very appreciative reception from the medical community because they connect to the story as professionals and on a personal level.) Micah began feeling slightly better shortly after our visit to the doctor, but he did not attend the event with us on Friday out of caution and consideration.

So, now to Friday. Every year the UW Health and Versiti organ donation organizations hold a special donor family event in the fall. It’s called the Gift of Life Donor Family Celebration, and it’s held at the State of Wisconsin Governor’s Residence in Madison. In fact, the event is through UW and Versiti, but the invitation that we received was actually from Wisconsin Governor Tony and First Lady Kathy Evers. It’s a special day in which donor families get together to honor the life, memory, and sacrifice of their “Donor Hero.” We registered, had our backgrounds checked, and dressed accordingly with the business casual dress code.

Since our boys’ feet are always growing, earlier in the week we went to thrift stores and found Robert a “new” brown pair of dress shoes. On Friday, we rolled up near the Governor’s Residence a little early to get a good parking spot. Robert was the last to get out of the car and as he extended his left foot to step down, the sole of his “new’ shoe fell off and dropped right onto the curb! It was pretty unbelievable… we all just stood there for a minute looking at it with an incredible amount of disbelief! Anyway, we threw the sole back into the car, and he had no choice but to walk into the event lopsided. I mean, what do you do?!??!?  We showed our IDs and went through security without any problem. We took a family picture in front of the fountain near the entrance to the house. Next, we took a brief tour through the Governor’s Residence then went outside to grab some lemonade and some hors d’oeuvres from the refreshment table on the rear lawn, just behind the tent where the meeting was going to be held. As we walked away to eat, the sole of Robert’s other shoe fell completely off too… Since we live in Wisconsin, we celebrate some of the famous quotes given to us by former Packers football coach Vince Lombardi. One of these is, “Act like you’ve been there before.” So, that’s exactly what we did. We discretely picked up the sole, concealed it momentarily, then casually dropped it into a trash can, and Robert walked around in dress moccasins for the next several hours, and no one noticed. With cameras, the Capital Police, and the governor’s Secret Service all over the place, we were very relieved that no one saw us as a threat! Some people go to thrift stores and find amazing things, but we find 999-piece puzzles and shoes whose soles drop off at elegant, solemn events during their first use!

After that quick bite to eat, we watched a slideshow video that displayed a picture and the name of each of the Donor Heros being remembered. It wasn’t too bad at first, but then when we saw Hannah’s picture and name, it was a bit overwhelming.

The rest of the day was beautiful. The weather was perfect, the staff was amazing, and the location was very appropriate for the event. There was a time of memorial in which we heard from the daughter of a donor who shared the story of her father, his passing, and her difficult journey of healing. Then a double kidney recipient spoke and shared his story. Richard received one kidney from his sister, who was a “living donor” for him, and the other one he had given to him “personally” by the mother of a young man who was about to pass away at the age of eighteen. As her son’s condition deteriorated, a friend told this woman about Richard, and she called him personally to tell him that she wanted to give him the gift of her son’s kidney. He was deeply moved and appreciative, and then he asked if the other one was spoken for because he had a friend from dialysis who was also in need. This mother gladly offered the second kidney to his friend. When the time of transplant came, one of the young man’s kidneys was incredibly small and the surgeon said that it would not work properly. Richard told the surgeon to give his friend the good one and him the “bad” one since it was still better than nothing and he wanted to see his friend well. The surgeon performed the surgery on Richard and to his amazement, once the tiny kidney received Richard’s blood flow and pressure, the kidney quickly expanded to its proper size! In disbelief, the surgeon told him that in thirty years, he had not seen or even heard of something like that! Richard now shares his story and promotes organ donation in churches. God works in amazing ways!

After Richard spoke, the names of all the Donor Heroes were read out loud and their families stood up representing them. Then Governor Evers spoke. He gave a very appropriate and heartfelt speech that honored the lives, memories, and sacrifice both of the donors and we as donor families. Following the memorial service, the Governor and First Lady went over to a gazebo where each of the donor families was able to meet with them personally for a few moments. We were able to tell them about our loved one, show them a photo that we each brought, and we were also able to have our picture taken with them. We wanted to be one of the last families to speak with them, so we waited a while. We were able to share Hannah’s Story with the President and CEO of Versiti. They had already heard of us, and we were able to talk about our partnering with them in the future.

Then we got in the picture line and when our turn came, Janean ended up being ushered up first, followed by the boys, then me. She showed the Governor a picture of Hannah and told him briefly about what had happened. She also had a Hannah Story Pamphlet with her, and she gave it to him so that he could get a better understanding of what happened later, at his own convenience. While she was talking to Governor Evers, I was able to speak to Mrs. Evers. I told her about Hannah, the allergic reaction, and our decision to donate. She listened extremely attentively, and I was able to share a Hannah Story Pamphlet with her. We explained that these pamphlets were able to tell the story more completely than we were able to in such a short amount of time. After this brief introduction to Hannah, we had our picture taken. The Governor stood next to Janean on one end, and his wife was by me on the other. As we were preparing for the picture, she leaned in close as we all do in pictures. I really had no place for my arm to go so I told her that I wasn’t sure if I should put my arm on her shoulder or if that was inappropriate. She said that it was just fine, so I did. (These things are always kind of a balance of respect and situational awareness. Some people just talk, some people shake hands or fist bump, and some people are huggers. We constantly need to be evaluating the body language, mood of the occasion, and each person’s personal boundaries. Respect always needs to be shown for their personal space, their feelings, and their time. Disrespect in any of these areas will undermine our message.) The picture was taken by a professional photographer, and we will receive it in a few days or so, along with a medal that has Hannah’s name inscribed on it, honoring her life and sacrifice.

After the picture, the Governor thanked us, commented on his sadness at Hannah’s story, and then I had a chance to speak with him too for a few moments. When all the families had gone through the line, the UW Health and Versiti Staff had their picture taken with them. After the final picture, the Governor spoke with a few people then went inside with his security. Mrs. Evers remained outside and spoke with several people. Then when opportunity presented itself, I was able to speak with her again. We spoke for several minutes, and then she had her assistant come over to hear about Hannah and all that I had to say. I told her that we would be happy to work with them in matters pertaining to allergies and especially allergies in food. I told them about our motto, Do right: breathe, take small steps, and keep moving forward. Then I pointed out that “Forward” is the state motto. They listened intently and sympathetically.

Although I know that we don’t agree with them in every area of politics, that was NOT what this event was about. In today’s political climate we unfortunately see so much animosity towards those with whom we disagree, but is it healthy and is it right?  The Bible tells us that we don’t wrestle with “flesh and blood,” but rather we need to understand that we are really fighting against dark rulers and forces of evil in an unseen spiritual realm. It also tells us to pray for our leadership because they have a very difficult job with a lot of pressure, influences, and responsibility. The Evers felt like grandparents, and we had a great time with them. They showed all of us in attendance the utmost respect and compassion. We found them to be extremely friendly, attentive, and sympathetic. They are “real people” too. They have children and grandchildren themselves and can imagine the hurt that we all feel.  We are grateful for their invitation, for the time they spent with us, and for their interest in learning about Hannah. We are thankful that they took the Hannah Story Pamphlets, and we would be honored to work with their people in matters of allergies and organ donation.

Hannah never would have dreamt that the Governor of Wisconsin would know who she is. We never dreamed that we would stand before him and his wife and share our tragedy with them. We see in this that God has a plan, and that plan is to take Hannah’s story and His love wherever He sends us. It was another unique step in our walk of faith! God is always at work.

Thank you, Governor and Mrs. Evers, thank you UW Health, and thank you Versiti for your hard work and dedication to us and towards this amazing cause.

We are blessed.