ConnectLife Blog

Story as told by Michael's daughter, Nancy My dad was one of six children. Five of the six served in World War II. He was drafted into the Army Air Corp in 1945 at the age of 18. He was stationed with the 1388th AAF Base Unit in Newfoundland Base, but he did not see combat as he was drafted at the end of World War II. Family was the most important thing in his life. He was always very proud of his time in the service. He was an avid bowler, and loved the Buffalo Bisons, Buffa

After Beth’s passing, her gifts continued to give through eye and tissue donation. She was a Christian woman, with a big heart that will continue to give long past her time on earth. Her family continues to be proud of her and honor her impact here each day.

Story as told by Kenzie's mom Kenzie loved to make people laugh and cheer them up when they were down by telling jokes or acting silly. She also loved to help people, spend time with her friends and family, have slumber parties, and she especially loved all animals, including horses. She was well known for her love for the country artist, Luke Bryan. She loved beating me at backgammon, and she was getting pretty good at it, too! Kenzie loved being an aunt to her niece Maci. K

My dad was Superman. He was incredibly smart and outgoing. He was the type of guy that was just really supportive. If you had a dream, he always was the first one to back you up and support you or help you out with whatever you needed.

Story as told by Hannah's mother, Sue Hannah had such an amazing spirit. She was kind, insightful, and wise beyond her 23 years. People tell me how she changed their lives simply by being a part of it. She had a very positive outward energy in spite of her own internal struggles. She had an amazing and beautiful heart. She inspired others to keep trying and never let pitfalls get the best of her. Hannah truly was just a beautiful soul and a blessing to have in our world. Hann

He was able to donate corneas, tissue and bone, heart and lungs, kidneys, split liver, and pancreas. I was told his heart and lungs were donated to the same person. It is all very overwhelming to me. I hope to someday meet the recipients and be able to hopefully hear his heartbeat again. I hope his story helps inspire others to become donors. It gives me and my family some comfort knowing a part of him lives on out there somewhere, that someone was given a second chance at li

My mom had a liver transplant in 1997, and after that, both of them were involved in TRIO (Transplants Saves Lives) then UNYTS – so that they could help spread the word about organ and tissue donation. Our family is forever grateful to mom's donor and her family, for the 11 1/2 "bonus" years that we had with her. One of mom's favorite volunteer activities was the donor recognition ceremony, where she was able to present the "Tree of Life" gift to donor families.

We were talking about organ donation and he mentioned to me that he wanted to be a donor. He asked me if I was and I told him yes, he then asked me how he could become one. I told him he could let the DMV know and they would put a heart symbol on his driver’s license. He took his license out of his wallet and was happy he had already let them know because he had the heart symbol. He said he wanted to help as many people as he could if he passed away.

Judy Hooper lived a life full of love! She was the type of person that had so much love to share and was always the heart and soul of her family. Her family remembers her for being the most giving and generous throughout her life; and even after as Judy was an eye and tissue donor.

Upon her passing, Melissa Mercer became an organ, eye and tissue donor with Unyts. Melissa was an avid animal lover, loved nature and always stepped up to lend a hand to anyone in need. She was loved by anyone who ever met her. She had a unique sense of humor and always made people laugh. Following her donation, Melissa’s husband has become involved with Unyts and spreading the donate life mission. He recently had a memorial blood drive with Unyts in Melissa’s honor, and supp

As told by his mom Kathy Mike was a good man with a big heart for others, and he would help anyone anytime that he could. One of Mike's favorite pastimes was to ride his motorcycle and make new friends. When he met a fellow rider, he or she became a brother or sister, and a friend for life. Mike loved everyone he rode with. He also had a furry companion, his beloved dog Gordo, who was his sidekick for many years. Mike’s journey into donation began when he was just a young tee

Donna Lee Gold of Buffalo became an organ donor upon her passing on June 21, 2011. She is remembered as a devoted mother and a giving person. The daughter of Donald Gold and Geraldine Wilder, Donna was born and raised in Western New York. She attended Black Rock Academy and later graduated from Riverside High School. She went to school to be a beautician. Donna enjoyed shopping, drinking Diet Pepsi and collecting M&M memorabilia. She loved to sing, especially country music, b

We knew that Justin would want to be an organ donor. During his life, he was always trying to help others and now in his death he was giving the gift that would save lives. We know that his big caring heart is beating in another man, his lungs, liver and kidneys were able to go to some very special people. There are two people that are seeing the world through his eyes. These people are in our prayers every day.

Cecelia M. Jasinski became a tissue donor upon her passing on December 15, 2012. Cecelia was a loving mother of four and grandmother to seven grandchildren. She also had many great grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild. She and her late husband Henry had made their home in Sloan. “She was amazing,” said her daughter Karen, remembering her mother as someone who cared about people and worked hard. Cecelia was active at St. Andrew Roman Catholic Church in Sloan and was in

Justin Sweeney became an organ, eye and tissue donor after his passing on March 8, 2016. His mother Kelly shared this remembrance: The greatest gifts anyone can receive are the gifts of life and love. On August 8, 2008 I was given both of these when my son, Justin Marcus Sweeney, was born. When I held him in my arms for the first time, I looked straight into his eyes and fell in love with him. His blue eyes sang a song of their own, without any words. It was as if you could h

Joseph P. Nicosia of Corfu became an eye and tissue donor upon his passing on December 23, 2015. His family shared this remembrance. Joe loved spending time with his family. He loved when the kids and their friends filled the house – they played games into the evening hours. He was proud of his children and what they had accomplished. He knew all three of them had a bright future ahead of them. Joe was a strong and healthy man. He was born February 25, 1960 to Emmanuel and K

Ryan Sojda of West Seneca became an organ and tissue donor upon his passing in March 2014. His parents Toni Lynn and Kevin shared this remembrance. Ryan Eric, “Our Hero, Our Warrior” Back in 1987 as we prepared for the birth of our first child, Kevin and I were looking at baby names. Kevin was absolutely certain we were having a boy and wanted to make sure that he had a strong name. As we looked at names and their meanings he found Ryan, which means “The King”, “A Warrior.” F

Jesse Smith of Buffalo was a loving husband, father and grandfather. “He enjoyed providing for the family,” said his wife Dixie. “He was an avid fisherman with the Eastside Angler's Fishing Club,” she remembered.

When he passed away on February 20, 2009, Raymond Ott was 78 years old. He became an eye and tissue donor.

Bryan W. McCown of Franklinville became an organ, eye and tissue donor upon his passing on October 31, 2011 at the age of 19.   His family shared this remembrance:   Bryan was born to a large family of eight. Even though he was second youngest in the family he became the biggest and tallest in the family and was known as our “gentle giant.” Bryan never used his size or strength to bully or intimidate, instead he tried to become their “big brother.” He had a heart of gold and