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“Yes. Julie always gave to others while she was alive. She would want to give in death.”

Within twenty-four hours, Mary was notified that she would receive Julie’s eyes, and John was
told to start preparing for a kidney transplant. Julie’s other organs would give life to other waiting
recipients.

“Julie died right after her twentieth birthday - twenty-four years ago. She left us with very happy
memories,” says Julie’s mother, now in her seventies. “Nothing -absolutely nothing - could possibly
be as heartbreaking as the death of your child,” she emphasizes, “for your heart breaks again and
again. At each birthday. At each holiday. At each milestone: when she would’ve graduated; when she

might’ve married; when she might’ve been having children.” Taking a slow and deliberate breath,
Julie’s mother says, “But Julie’s life was a gift to us. Knowing that in her death, she gave the gift of
life and sight to others is comforting to us, and remembering that we carried out her wishes has
helped us cope with her death more than anything else.”

Her voice softening, Julie’s mother says, “You and Julie’s other friends and teachers were an
important part of her life. Your teaching influenced her life tremendously, and you remind us that our
love for Julie and Julie’s love for others are alive today.”

As one of Julie’s professors, I hold the thought that I may have had a small part in teaching Julie
how to live. But she - and her family - are still teaching me an even greater lesson: How to die.

- Barbara Russell Chesser