What day is it?

By Nila Harris

When I first started teaching for PC schools in the late 1980s, I became acquainted with a bus driver named Ann Calvert. When Ann received a heart transplant in the early ’90s, it was a big deal.

Little was known about heart transplants in our area, and for a Pendleton County woman to receive a new lease on life was a big deal.

This really hit home with me, because not only did I know Calvert through the school system, my father fought with heart disease all his life. He died from a massive heart attack at age 56. It was great seeing someone I knew being able to carry on, even though my dad could not.

While attending Relay For Life in 2005, I received a call from Sharon Valentine telling me that there was a donor heart available for my husband’s uncle Paul Smith.

At the time, Smith had been in the hospital, near death. I just knew that he would not make it out of the hospital without a heart.

Crying tears of relief for Paul and praying for the donor’s family who had just experienced a devastating loss, I also began praying for the surgeons, medical staff, and a successful surgery and recovery for Uncle Paul. What a beautiful gift he received!

Like Calvert, Bob McClanahan was a PC bus driver for several years, eventually becoming transportation director. I met Bob and his wife Esther (who also drove a bus) when I taught at Northern and remember getting word in 2009 that he would receive a liver transplant.

This was exciting news, because I knew that McClanahan had been trying to continue working, despite being so sick at times prior to his transplant.

It’s been 15 years since his transplant, and McClanahan continues to be active in his church and on his farm. He also serves as deputy coroner, as needed.

Feb. 14 is not only Valentine’s Day but also National Donor Day — a day set aside to raise awareness about organ donations and how organ donations can be life changing. 

Here are some interesting (if not alarming) stats about organ needs/donations according to organdonor.gov.

• 17 people die each day waiting on a transplant.

• Every donor can save eight lives and enhance 75 more.

• 46,000+ transplants were performed in 2023.

• Every eight minutes another person is added to the transplant list.

• 103,223 men, women, and children are on the national transplant waiting list.

Talk to family members about their end-of-life desires. Sign up today and make new life possible for others. When you renew your driver’s license, you can sign up to become an organ donor. Or you may register any time at donatelifeky.org.

I am eternally grateful for those who chose life to help my family and friends in the Pendleton County community and beyond.