Celebration of life held honoring loved ones who have donated organs to save others

SOCIETY HILL - A celebration was held Sunday to honor those who have saved lives, through organ donation, bringing the families of donors and recipients together.

"I think she would be proud of her mother. She was my only child," donor Melika Rose’s mother, Debra White-Roberts, said.

Every year, the Gift of Life Donor Program brings together families for their Life and Legacy Celebration. The goal of the event is to honor those who became heroes by saving the life of someone else through an organ tissue donation.

"We hope that they can take away that they’ve created a legacy for others in the ripple effect that donation has," said President and CEO Gift of Life Program, Rick Hasz.

Debra White-Roberts says the ceremony is healing and a chance to pay tribute to her daughter, Melika Rose, who passed at the age of 19. Melika was born with kidney failure, received a transplant at nine, then a year before her passing, signed up to be a donor herself.

"After that transplant, Melika really became an advocate for organ donation. She and her aunt started a kickboxing foundation. Her goal was to kick kidney disease in the butt," White-Roberts explained.

And now her mother picks up her advocacy where Melika left off, encouraging people, especially in the Black community, to consider donating. "I think the fear is that if something happens, the doctors won’t save me because they want my organs. And I say, you know, read the information, seek out information. That couldn’t be further from the truth."

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24-year-old Carly Calhoun knows first-hand just how much of an impact a donor can make on someone’s life. After being diagnosed with corneal abrasion, an infection led to blindness in her eye. That’s until 2017 when she received a cornea transplant that restored her sight.

"Organ tissue transplantation is just so important, not only for organ transplantation that can save lives, but improve quality of life, like my own. And, I also have the unique experience of knowing who my donor is," Calhoun stated.

She now makes it her mission to honor the 14-year-old boy who gave her the gift of sight. "There’s a lot of weird coincidences between his and my life. He was born with the same congenital heart defect that my brother was born with. And, his dad went to St. Joseph’s University, which is where I went and there’s a pizza shop right across from my college apartment with his picture hanging up. So, it feels almost like fate that our lives were meant to be intertwined."

Families Sunday not only walked away with a sense of purpose, but also Gift of Life donor medals, handmade wraps and yellow flowers representing their sacrifice.

"Whether it be a birthday, a graduation, a wedding that they wouldn’t have been able to attend if it hadn’t been for them and their decision to say yes to donation," Hasz remarked.

Get more information on becoming an organ donor by heading to the Gift of Life Donor Program registry website, here.