In the logistics world, we are surrounded by everyday heroes. When disaster strikes, our teams step in to provide emergency support and deliver supplies far and wide. Of course, we take our inspiration from the heroes we come home to as well, like Liam, the son of Laramy Gregory, who works with one of our carrier customers.
Just before his second birthday on September 30, 2015, Liam had a stroke and was rushed to the hospital. There, doctors discovered his heart was enlarged, and he would need a transplant. A few months later, on Christmas Day, Liam reached the top of the waiting list and received a heart transplant from an anonymous donor.
In the wake of this miracle, Liam became the face of organ donation in Missouri. His smiling face was displayed on billboards and buses across the state to raise awareness of Cardinal Glennon Hospital’s pediatric transplant program.
While organ donation typically brings to mind a stamp on your driver’s license, the simple decision to say yes to organ donation may one day save a life. “If somebody would sign up because of Liam, and either get an organ or give one – I mean, it’s just amazing to me to think about it,” his dad told KFVS12.
Each year, there are upwards of 500 pediatric heart transplants worldwide. One in ten heart transplants allows a child to experience their childhood. Meanwhile, over 113,000 men, women, and children remain on the national transplant waiting list as of July 2019. While 95 percent of us support organ donation, only 58 percent of us are signed up as donors.
Thanks to his organ donation, our superhero Liam is now headed to kindergarten. The parents who found themselves in an impossible situation watching their two-year-old struggle to survive while hooked up to tubes in the hospital? This year, they got to send him off to school like any other kid.
So, have you gotten your stamp of superhero approval yet?
Fuel for Thought,
~Bob
