1. Cameron Lyle, a college track athlete, chose to end his career to donate bone marrow to a stranger.
2. Tom Walter, the head coach of baseball at Wake Forest, donated his kidney to one of his players.
3. Evan Hauk, a fun-loving and outdoorsy 13-year-old, posthumously donated his corneas, allowing two others to see.
To prepare for a fishing trip with his father, Evan Hauk was tragically electrocuted by a 110 volt electric prod used to gather earthworms. When he was pronounced dead at the hospital, his parents made the decision to donate Evan's corneas. Because of Evan, two people are now able to see.
4. Eduardo Camargo lost 40 pounds in two months in order to save his daughter.
5. Ronald Burke donated a kidney to his son after his wife's donated kidney failed.
6. Tracey Vogen and Dawn Strand joined together to donate their livers to their neighbor, Darren Conrad.
7. Kindergarden teacher Wendy Killian donated her kidney to her student.
As the health of Nicole Miller, a first-grader with a genetic disorder that caused kidney malformation, began to decline, her doctors scrambled to find a matching donor. When it was determined that her parents were not suitable, Nicole's teacher from the previous year chose to donate to save her student, who she refers to as "Sunshine Girl", to save her life.
8. Father Jonathan Goertz donated his kidney to parishioner Bruce McComb.
9. Erica Tomlinson, surprised neighbor Renee Ly with a kidney donation after having all the necessary tests done before telling her.
When Renee Ly was diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholangitis, a rare liver disease, her future looked bleak. Her young neighbor, Erica Tomlinson secretly took all of the necessary clearance tests and, when she found she was a suitable match, surprised Ly with both a new kidney and newfound chance at life.
10. A teacher, Terry Roberts, donated her kidney to ailing Army Specialist Daniel Ruckel.
When Ruckel suffered from a traumatic brain injury while serving in Afghanistan, he received heavy duty painkillers, which later damaged both of his kidneys. When Roberts, who has a few military ties herself, saw his story, she felt compelled to be tested. Her donation, "both personal and patriotic", saved Ruckel's life.
11. 58-year-old Julia Navarro served as a gestational surrogate for her daughter.
12. Patti Szuber posthumously saved her father's life by donating her heart.
Chester Szuber underwent three separate bypass surgeries, with the last one leading to a massive heart attack on the operating table. Sadly, his daughter was critically injured in a car accident. When it was determined to be fatal, the doctors wanted to transplant her heart to her father. After waiting on the transplant list for four years, Chester Szuber was offered a second chance at life by his beloved daughter.
February 14th is National Donor Day.
