Deloris Hicks/ Tribune Correspondent

Kandis Newton would never have seen high school without the gift of life from a stranger. Newton received a liver transplant in 1998 from an anonymous donor. Now the 16-year-old and 49 other organ recipients will be part of the Dallas Mavericks' Organ Donor Game on Dec 14.

The teenager will travel, along with her sister and parents, to Dallas for the game in just over a week, but this journey began for the family soon after Kandis was born.

According to her mother, Penny Newton, Kandis was just six-weeks-old when she was diagnosed with biliary atresia, a liver disease that caused her liver to form with no bile ducts. "I can't tell you how many times we were in and out of the hospital," Penny said. "At 10 she weighed 42 pounds when she had her transplant."

The surgery has changed everything for Kandis and her family. "She was a different child before the surgery," Penny said. "She had rickets and her eyes were always yellow, we had never seen her without yellow eyes. That's how we knew she was sick."

Although live organ donation is possible, it was not an option in this family. Penny volunteered to donate to her daughter, but it was ruled out as too risky. "The doctors said I would need to be in shape to take care of her after the surgery," said Penny.

After a lifetime of being in and out of the hospital, Kandis was put on the waiting list to be a liver recipient. "When her health improved, they would take her off the list," Penny said. "The last time she was put on in February and six months later she had the transplant."

"When she came out of surgery, it was the first time we saw her without yellow eyes," Penny said. "I appreciate the family even though we have never met. They are always in our prayers."

Penny credits her daughter's illness for many changes in their lives. "Those years were difficult, painful and sad," Penny said, "but we learned to be strong." Just the care needed to attend to a chronically ill child was difficult. "I had to learn to put a tube down her throat and clean a port under her skin," Penny said. "When it is your child, you do a lot of things you never thought you could or would do. It's by God's grace."

"Her body is still prone to infections, but she has come a long way," said Penny. "She has done extremely well." Penny noted that Kandis' body still tries to reject the liver as a foreign object at times but medical intervention keeps it under control.

Today Kandis is busy being a teenager. "I played basketball and other sports for a while," said Kandis, "But now I like hanging out with friends and family." She is also in dance at school.

The whole family is looking forward to the basketball game. "I was happy when we found out," said Kandis about being one of the 50 invited to the Mavericks game.

Fifty is an important number when it comes to organ donation. Dec 23, 1954 the first successful organ transplantation in the United States. One organ/tissue donor can save or enhance 50 lives. To thank donor families for 50 years of miracles and symbolize the lives saved by one donor, 50 organ transplant children from across Texas will take the court at half-time.

Pat Summerall, sports commentator and liver recipient will also be on-court at half-time with the children. Southwest Transplant Alliance helped coordinate the event with the Mavericks' basketball team. Donor cards will be distributed to the audience and t-shirts and basketballs will be tossed into the crowd.

According to Pam Silvestri, Southwest Transplant Alliance community education director, the Dallas Mavericks have been strong supporters of the transplant program since 1997 when they permitted the alliance to give an award to Carlos Rogers, then of the Toronto Raptors, on court at halftime.

Rogers tried to donate a kidney to his sister. Other NBA players have also been personally involved in organ donation. Greg Ostertag, who plays for the Sacramento Kings donated a kidney to his sister, Amy. Amy will be in attendance for the event.

In the last 50 years over 400,000 lives have been saved by organ donation. Many people wrongly assume that signing the right spot when they get a drivers license will ensure their organs will be donated.

"It is nice to sign something saying you want to be a donor, but it is not necessary," Silvestri said. "All you have to do to be a donor is make the decision and tell your family."

Silvestri explains that for a person to be a donor they must pass away on a ventilator and under those circumstances a person from the donor center will be called in to discuss the option with the family.

"Making your wishes known to your family is important to help them make the decision at a hard time," Silvestri said.

There are now no age constraints for donors. "Ten years ago we were looking for perfect organs, now we are looking for healthy organs because the need has increased tremendously," Silvestri said. "Age is not an issue as long as the organs work, they can be donated."

Even though 25,000 people receive transplants each year in the United States, 17 people die each day on the waiting list. Living donors surpassed deceased donors in 1991 and the trend is holding, but only kidneys, part of a liver or lung may be donated in this manner.

"For every happy story there is with a successful transplant, there are so many more patients waiting on the list and each one has a family," Silvestri said. "Tomorrow it could be someone you love that needs an organ."

Kandis hopes people will pay attention to the celebration at the American Airlines Center. "I think people should donate," Kandis said. "It will help somebody else live."

For information on organ donation contact the Southwest Transplant Alliance at 1-800-788-8058 or visit the website at www.organ.org.