Breath of Life Update 10/31/2010

Meeting Rosemary and Family (Pictures are below the post)

This past weekend, Debbie and I flew to Lexington, Kentucky to meet Rosemary and some of her family for the very first time. We met her at a Cracker Barrel located next to our hotel at 4:30 on Friday afternoon. For those of you familiar with Cracker Barrel, as we walked up and saw the line of rocking chairs with "Kentucky" painted in bold blue letters placed neatly on the porch, we were greeted by a lady who immediately said "I know who you are". Rosemary embraced both Debbie and I. Under these circumstances, it was obviously quite a mix of emotions to greet someone you have never met. God again was very gracious as I believe He continued to orchestrate the unique setting we have all been placed in.

As we stood outside, Rosemary then gave us a copy of the "Memorial Service" print out that was handed out at Timothy's memorial service held on October 5, 2009 in Winchester, Kentucky. I would be lying if I told you that I was totally calm inside, as I felt feelings and had various thoughts that seemed to "rattle" me a good bit. Nothing bad, but just the thought of someone dying for me to live and to then meet their family for the very first time was quite extraordinary to say the least.

As I stood there in Lexington, Kentucky and looked at the pictures of Timothy, my mind was racing and Rosemary was beginning to tell us about Timothy. As she continued to share, I said "Lets go inside and get a table" for fear I was going to miss something. She had arrived 10 minutes before us and already had things set up for us.

After being seated and allowing time for Rosemary, Debbie and I to share a little bit with each other, Debbie and I presented a couple of gifts and a card to Rosemary. Our older kids, Ricky and Christy, had taken all of the updates that had been written along with some pictures since September 2009 and had them printed and bound into a book. [They had it shipped directly to our hotel, so upon check-in Debbie and I got to see it for the first time as well. I have to admit, I was quite impressed but as I sat in our hotel room that afternoon admiring the cover, it was the content that took me back over the past several years. To be there in Lexington, just a couple of hours away from meeting the family of our donor was again quite the mix of emotions]. We also gave her a "Photo Album" that had butterflies on it, as she had told me previously she liked things with butterflies on them.

Rosemary's son Scott and his wife Kesha were kind enough to come and share some time with us as well that evening. Before we left the restaurant that evening, I think everyone in that back section knew it was going to be my birthday on Saturday, but more importantly they knew I was the recipient of Timothy's lungs and this was our first time meeting. That sounds somewhat quite awkward, but yet it again was an opportunity for God to be Glorified. Imagine, me being the master of having "Happy Birthday" being sung to the unsuspecting person and yes they did it to me. My birthday was not only announced, but that I was a double lung transplant recipient and that Rosemary was the mother of the donor. This is probably not the "Usual First Meeting", but as everything else has gone since October 2, 2009, I don't believe any of it has been Usual!!! The "Operation Breath of Life" book was viewed by many that both sang and waited on our table that evening. Other strangers had words of encouragement as well to us as we left that night.

After leaving Cracker Barrel, Rosemary, Scott, Debbie and I went over to our hotel "Sitting Area" where we had opportunity to share a little more. Debbie and I went up to our room around 8:30 that night and one can only imagine all of thoughts that continued to race through my mind. It was a blessing to be greeted so warmly by Rosemary and her son and daughter-in-law.

On Saturday morning, we had the opportunity to meet again with Rosemary and other family members as well. We met her daughter Pam, her husband Rob and their 2 children Isaiah and Neveah. Rosemary's son Scott and his wife Kesha and their children Taylor and Madison also joined us. The children were great as they sat and watched TV as we got to visit.

Later that morning, Debbie and I, along with Rosemary took a ride to Asbury college which was about 25 minutes away from our hotel. As our daughter Kylie is a junior in high school, that "List of Colleges" needs to start to really be addressed. Probably one of the most memorable moments for me this past weekend was walking around the Asbury campus and stumbling upon the Chapel, going inside and for Debbie, Rosemary and I to walk down to the front row [pew] of that Chapel and to be seated, to look up at the "Stained Glass Window" with Jesus pictured. Then to have a quiet time to stop and pray to express our gratefulness to God and Rosemary for the "Miracle of Life" given to us this past year. It was truly a highlight of the weekend for me.

As I share this next part with you, please know that I called Rosemary and asked permission to share about Timothy's life and passing. I had done that also as we met this past weekend, but wanted to read to her what I was about to share with you.

In regards to Timothy's life, as with many of us, and as explained to us through words from Rosemary and from words printed on his Memorial Service hand-out, life was a tough journey for Timothy at times. However, in his passing, God took him home to Heaven and through the donation of his organs, others were saved. His last steps of his journey on Earth led him to a small church in a rural town in Georgia, where "Sunday Night Services" take place only once a month and a stranger from that church invited Timothy in and offered him some help if he would just stay for church. Timothy stayed, received some help, but got up part way through the service and the stranger thought he was leaving. Timothy evidently got up as he was not feeling well from his days of traveling. It turns out that Timothy had a seizure, collapsed, hit his head and died at that church that night. Rescue was called and due to the distance between the local Fire Station and the church and timing of the incident, the rescue team was not able to save Timothy' life, as his heart had stopped beating for an extended period of time.

However, through the efforts of that stranger, the rescue team, the police and many others, Rosemary and her family were contacted on the following Tuesday and told Timothy was on Life Support as a result of this incident. Some of the family were able to travel from Kentucky to Georgia on Tuesday and after talking as a family on that Thursday, October 1, 2009, decided it would be a great opportunity for Timothy's life to help others by donating his organs.

As the recipient of Timothy's lungs and after meeting some of Timothy's family face to face and learning about his life and their lives, Debbie and I again are so grateful for the Gift of Life given to us through this Miracle known as "Operation Breath of Life". Rosemary and her family welcomed us with loving arms and made us feel very accepted as we met for the very first time. From the serious moments to the laughter to the what could have been very awkward, God was very good to us again. As a stranger in the hotel "sitting area" sat and observed us on Friday night, her word to me after hearing about the miracle that had taken place in my life was that God had blessed us and it was a miracle, but as a result of this miracle, she said obviously God still "has some work for you to do".

Please continue to pray for Derek, the young firefighter, who is still paralyzed as as result of his accident. Pray specifically for the swelling to go down, for no infection and for a procedure he is to have on Monday to try and clear out his lungs. Also continue to pray for my brother Steve and his family as he journeys through life with the same lung disease that I had and also pray for a young girl named Lindsay and a man named Dale who are awaiting lung transplant.

Lastly, I believe Rosemary and her family appreciated our time and the opportunity to be able to share about our journey and life with them that each of you have played such a huge part in. She told us on Saturday morning that she stayed up on Friday night and read the entire book of updates from September 2009 through October 2010 and quoted many of the stories to us on Saturday. As Rosemary shared some of her own personal struggles in life with us, I assured her we all have shortcomings and faults but God is gracious to forgive as we sincerely ask for forgiveness, even though that sometimes in life the consequences can be very severe. Please continue to pray for Rosemary, her family and the impact that the "Operation Breath of Life" can have on them as well. God Bless each of you.

Love in Christ,

Rick and Debbie

Rosemary, Scott and I

Visiting Asbury college

Timothy's family