fbpx

“It’s like I have a new family now”

Donor Mother Teena Smith (left) and heart recipient Sharon Culbreath.

Michigan woman meets son’s heart recipient

Two years after her son died, Teena Smith heard his heart beating once again.

Joseph Reaume died at 41 in 2020. Smith, along with Reaume’s three adult sons, agreed to authorize organ donation since he was not already registered as a donor, but said the decision was an easy one to make.

“I thought about what a giving person he was,” said Smith, of Pullman, about 15 miles northeast of South Haven. “I just felt like it’s what he would have wanted to do.”

His gifts saved four lives, including Sharon Culbreath, a 51-year-old resident of Elkhart, Indiana, who received his heart. The two women met for the first time in October, after sharing correspondence, texts and phone calls over the summer. Smith said seeing Culbreath and listening to her son’s heart was an amazing and healing experience.

“When you lose a child, it stays with you for the rest of your life,” she said. “This has helped me to move forward and deal with it, but it’s still very hard.”

She said her son was always willing to help others. He had overcome some mental health challenges in his life and started to travel shortly before his death, visiting places such as Las Vegas and Jamaica. He was in Florida when he passed, and Smith flew down to be by his side.

Culbreath said she had been battling a heart condition for 20 years. Her health worsened until, in early 2020 and recently married, her chest pain became so bad she had difficulty breathing. Doctors said her heart was pumping at only 5% capacity. She was in the hospital again in October when she and her doctors learned that she was a match for a donor’s heart.

“Organ donation saves lives,” Culbreath said. “I’m a miracle standing here. I have a second chance and I’m going to do the best I can. I’m going to take care of this heart.”

Smith and Culbreath started corresponding about a year later and set up the meeting in October. When the two families met, Smith said it was almost like a reunion.

“It’s like I have a new family now,” she said. “If I could have picked someone to get this heart, I could not have picked a better person.”

Donor brother Todd Smith (left) and heart recipient Sharon CulbreathMore than 100,000 patients are waiting for an organ transplant in the U.S., including nearly 2,400 here in Michigan. Culbreath said she tells those waiting to be strong and not give up hope, and those who are not registered she encourages to sign up as an organ and tissue donor.

“You will not need your organs when you are gone,” she said. “Why not give them to someone so they can live on?”

Smith said she knows she made the right decision and thinks her son would agree.

“He would say: ‘I’m so happy you did this. You did the right thing. And thank you.’”

To sign up on the Michigan Organ Donor Registry, visit golm.org.

Read More Posts
Sara Schmidt, who became an organ donor, hugs her mother, Donna Ternes

Michigan woman pens book about daughter, organ donation

“But God” chronicles difficult life that led to a decision to save others Sara Schmidt’s…

Read More
Female doctor holding open chart looking at the camera

Donor Registry Awareness Bill introduced in Michigan

House Bill 4060 would increase awareness, provide education on organ and tissue donation State Reps….

Read More
Vickie Figeroa stands in front of several pews and stained glass windows

Heart recipient adopts second mission: Advocating for organ, tissue donation

“I always tell people to sign up,” Grosse Pointe Woods woman says Vickie Figueroa makes…

Read More
Blue, white and green infographic showing 2022: A Record Year with 463 organ donors and 1,821 tissue donors

Gift of Life Michigan sets record for organ, tissue donors in 2022

Gift of Life Michigan helped a record 463 people become organ donors and 1,821 give…

Read More
Portrait of Krishna and Pamela Sawhney

Bloomfield Hills couple pledges $125,000 to Gift of Life Michigan

Donation will support award-winning youth education program Pamela and Krishna Sawhney of Bloomfield Hills have…

Read More

Legislation prohibits discrimination in organ transplant system

HB 4762 protects disabled patients, helps save lives Legislation approved in the Michigan House of…

Read More
Scroll to Top