Losing a family member is never easy, but when that person is a small child, it is even more terrifying.
But sometimes when we lose people we love, there are ways we can help other families from losing their loved ones, such as through organ donation.
The story of an incredibly brave little girl who helped save the lives of many strangers after she lost her own is both tragic and touching.
In 2019, a family in Iowa suffered the loss of their 1-year-old child, Cora. However, they can take solace in the fact the little girl’s life helped save the lives of two other children and an adult.
Has since touched millions of lives with her story, especially three in particular — a 1-year-old boy who received her heart, a 1-year-old girl who received her liver and a 41-year-old woman who received her kidneys.
Coralynn “Cora” Sobolik’s final moments were spent being honored by her parents Meagan and Paul Sobolik, as well as the medical staff at Mayo Clinic Hospital in Rochester.
Cora was declared braindead by doctors the day before the video was taken after her small body was unable to fight off a virus.
The video shows the hospital staff lining the hallways as the young girl was taken into the operating room.
Some of the staff sang “Amazing Grace” in tribute to Coralynn. Meagan whispered softly into her daughter’s ear. She told her she was on her way to save three lives. She also told her daughter that her mother would love her forever.
In an interview with People, Meagan said:
“I dropped to my knees and cried and kept saying, ‘No, no, no, God, no.’ I then felt numb and felt empty.”
But despite being in grief at the loss of their infant daughter, the Soboliks weren’t just thinking of themselves. Meagan said in the same interview:
“When we knew that she wasn’t ever going to wake and that she was gone mentally, we knew that she would want her organs to help people in need.”
Once they were aware that Cora would not return mentally, they knew they wanted her organs to help people who needed them. In the end, a 1-year-old boy received Cora’s heart, a 1-year-old girl received her liver and a 41-year-old woman was donated her kidneys. The Soboliks told People:
“She is going to be living on within three different people. She isn’t really gone, she lives on in her legacy.”
Meagan said the reason she filmed the moments leading up to Cora’s surgery was for the benefit of family members who couldn’t attend. She also said it gave her “comfort” to see her again “and confirm what we did was the right thing to do.”
The grieving mother also spoke about the incredible staff at the Mayo Clinic who made Cora’s final moments so special:
“The staff at Mayo was more than any family could ask for. I was speechless, and it was truly wonderful to see and feel so much love and support for our little girl.”
She also spoke highly of the doctor who cared for Cora:
“The doctor that took care of her came in on his day off to be the first in line and also the last one to be with us when they shut the elevator doors to take her to surgery.” She added: “The nursing staff was amazing to us … They gave us so much comfort and support while we were there, it was amazing.”
“Even though Coralynn was so young, she made a huge impact on the world,” her obituary read.
Source:.apost.com, people.com
