Southwest Transplant Alliance

Most, like Dominique Morris and his mother, NaTasha Christopher, both of Killeen will be meeting for the first time the families of the organ donors who made leading healthy and productive lives possible.

The Southwest Transplant Alliance and Scott & White are sponsoring the 2-4 p.m. event.

Kyle and Amy Foster, parents of Hannah, are looking forward to meeting Dominique and his mother this weekend and expect it to be emotional.

Morris, 17, was a patient at Scott & White and had been on the transplant waiting list for only four days when he received a kidney from Hannah.

Hannah Foster was 16 and a Bryan High School junior when she was a passenger in a truck that went off the road and flipped several times. Hannah, who had no identification with her, was severely injured.

Her parents were at a tailgate party on Oct. 27, 2007, when her father received a phone call from a DPS trooper inquiring if Foster had a daughter named Hannah.

Foster was told an unidentified teen, whose name was Hannah, had been in an accident in the Bryan area and was at Scott & White Memorial Hospital in Temple.

Foster and his wife immediately left for Temple and during the 75-minute drive were in constant contact with Scott & White nurses.

Once the family arrived at the hospital they were able to identify their daughter, who had no apparent external injuries.

Hannah was on life support, he said, and it became very clear early on what the outcome would be.

“In car wrecks you expect someone to have obvious injuries,” Foster said. “Hannah was a little dirty and had a small bruise across her chest from the seat belt. There were no scratches or cuts, her injury was singular and it was her brain.”

Seeing his daughter, who appeared to be physically whole, made the decision to donate her organs so obvious, he said.

“She was fine except for her brain … why wouldn’t we decide to donate,” Foster said. “It was just so easy and honest.”

Foster said his family sees Hannah’s death from one perspective and the donation portion of the story feels right and good.

“Our memories are mostly about Hannah’s life, but it’s comforting to know others are able to continue their lives or have a better quality of life,” he said.

Teen’s kidneys failing

Morris was 16 when he was diagnosed with Alport syndrome, the second most common inherited cause of kidney failure.

The disease usually affects young men, with the majority developing kidney failure in their late teens or early 20s.

Morris’ mother said finding out her son had a hereditary disease was devastating because she also learned he had inherited it from her.

After Morris was diagnosed, his siblings were tested and it was learned his 12-year-old brother has the same disease.

Dominique had been active in sports, but he eventually had to quit playing football because high blood pressure is one of the characteristics of the disease. Deafness is another problem and Morris did lose significant hearing.

Before the transplant, Morris was on a lot of medications and had to give up a lot of different foods because of his potassium levels.

“He had to take two pills before he ate anything,” his mother said.

After the transplant, Morris felt good enough to go to an Ellison High School football game the same day he was discharged from the hospital.

He now works in construction, installing telephone and computer wires.

Hannah’s donations

Foster said he and his wife had talked about organ donations, believing it was the right thing to do, if possible. However, they never imagined they would have to make such a decision about one of their children.

The Fosters didn’t leave the hospital until after Hannah’s organs were removed, which took place the afternoon of the following day.

The Fosters know two individuals received Hannah’s kidneys, including Morris, and a 51-year-old got her liver.

“We know others received gifts from her, but we don’t know specifics,” Foster said.

The family approached the organ transplant process with no expectations, other than their own knowledge that Hannah would live on. If organ recipients or their families wanted to contact the Fosters that was OK, too.

Hannah was energetic, Foster said, and with any child, that energy ran the spectrum - both good and not so good.

“She was creative, independent and nurturing,” he said.