When Maria Compagner from Holland was just two months old, her family received news no parent ever wants to hear. She had tumors on her liver.
By the time she was almost a year old, she underwent her first liver transplant.
“I received my first liver from Rose,” Maria shared. “She was a 56-year-old woman who died due to an aneurysm.”
Although her early years were marked with challenges, Maria did well for a while. However, as she grew, complications emerged.
“Eventually, I started having more issues with my bile ducts, as well as developing portal hypertension,” she said.
Maria was listed for a second liver transplant at the age of four. Just two weeks before her seventh birthday, she received her second life-saving liver transplant from a donor named AJ.
Now 28, Maria has been able to graduate from high school and the Ready for Life Academy at Hope College, and has worked at Family Fare grocery store since 2016.
“Ready for Life is a program for people with learning disabilities that normally can’t get into college,” she explained. “It was fun. It taught me how to budget money. I tell people that, and they say, ‘I should have learned that when I was in college.’”
Maria and her family have had the opportunity to connect with both Rose and AJ’s families. At the age of five she met Rose’s husband David and AJ’s mom sent a letter three years after the death of her son to his recipients. Recently, Maria reached out to share all that she has accomplished. Because of their generosity, Maria is here today and enjoying every minute of her life.
“I’ve been able to go to college, work at a grocery store, and live with my friend Jenny in downtown Holland. I love my family, my friends and my cats. I am here today and loving my life because of my two donors. Thank you, Rose and AJ, for saving my life.”
More than 2,600 patients in Michigan are waiting for a lifesaving organ. The best way to save lives is by joining the Michigan Organ Donor Registry at golm.org/signup.
