Illuminating Generosity – A Virtual Celebration of Life
11/19/2020“On a normal day, we would be welcoming you in person. We would be listening to you, we would be looking into your eyes, we would hear your stories of your loved one,” says Marcel Pincince, director of Donor Family and Advocate Services at Donor Network of Arizona (DNA). Due to the global pandemic, DNA took our annual Celebration of Life event virtual.
Despite the lack of an in-person audience, this beautiful event created a space for honoring 2019 donors and connecting with others who share a similar journey. Donor families came together in the live chat and comments, sharing about their loved one who gave the gift of life and healing. The theme, Illuminating Generosity, reflects what we hope donation can mean for all our donor families – a light in the darkest of times.
Sammy’s Light Shines On
That’s certainly how the Willmott family sees it. Sammy Willmott passed away at just 16 years old and became an organ and tissue donor. Now Sammy’s bright light continues to shine on in the lives of the four people he saved through organ donation and the many more he healed through tissue donation. It is no wonder that Sammy’s parents, Jennifer and Ken, and his two older sisters, Sienna and Savannah, are so proud of him. Sammy was very loving and compassionate, and he spent his whole life helping others. Thank you to the Willmott family for sharing Sammy’s story during Illuminating Generosity.
Their Special Hearts
Thanks to the generosity of donors like Sammy, the Siqueiros family has had more time all together. Two-year-old fraternal twins, Jason and Jaxson, as well as their older sister, 4-year-old Isabel, were all born and diagnosed with cardiomyopathy at a very young age. Isabel, two years ago, got her second chance of life through a heart transplant. Jason Jr. also received his gift of life earlier this year. As we were following the family through their journey, a call came through, an answer to their prayer, which they now call Jaxson’s special heart.
“I’m just forever grateful, eternally in debt to these families,” says Sara Siqueiros during the Illuminating Generosity event. “And I pray we get to meet at least one, someday…I don’t understand how my family got so lucky. There’s not even words I could ever come up with to describe how grateful we are to these families who chose to donate life. They’re just forever a part of my heart, my children’s hearts.”
Watching In Honor Of…
During the ceremony, we were touched by the remembrances donor families shared in the comments and chat. One viewer said, “Thank you for such a beautiful, thoughtful presentation. Although you may have wished the presentation to be in person, I appreciated being able to view from home…my remembrances and tears in private solace. Marcel, your calm yet expressive voice to our pain is like a soothing balm. Thank you again.”
We hope that if you haven’t yet had a chance to watch Illuminating Generosity, you will join us now by clicking here to watch. As part of the ceremony, we invite you to light a candle to honor everyone you would like to remember, so please have a candle nearby for that part of the tribute.