In January 2005, Debra Thompson’s 24-year-old daughter Laurie Ann Giddings saved five lives as an organ donor. When Laurie, who had been born with Down Syndrome, was seven, Debra’s eldest child, 14-year-old Jennifer, was killed in a car accident. Meeting Laurie’s needs helped Debra survive that tragedy. Working with UNYTS to promote organ donation “allows me to honor her memory and keep her alive in my heart.”

Debra's Story

On January 12, 2005, 24-year-old Laurie Ann Giddings sat down to her favorite meal of meatball subs for dinner. While enjoying her sub, she began choking on a meatball that had become lodged in her throat. Her mother’s attempts at the Heimlich maneuver were unsuccessful, as were the attempts by the paramedics. By the time she arrived at the hospital emergency room, where the meatball was removed with forceps, Laurie had been without oxygen for approximately 20 minutes, with only minimal brain stem activity remaining. During the next six days, her family was presented with many difficult decisions. “But the final decision to donate her organs was the easiest one I had to make,” said her mother Debra Thompson, a 54-year old legal secretary.

When Laurie, who had been born with Down Syndrome, was seven, Debra’s eldest child, 14-year-old Jennifer, was killed in a car accident. “It was then that I realized why Laurie had been sent to me. Her needs still had to be met. If I had not had her to occupy my days, I never would have survived the loss of my Jennifer,” said Debra, who had become a single mother at that point.

“Laurie filled my life with joy as the years passed. For 24 years, my world revolved around her and her needs. Although she was very independent, she required extra care and supervision in many areas. Losing her has left an enormous void in my life, but I am able to get through each day knowing that she saved the lives of five people with the donation of her heart, kidneys, liver and pancreas.”

Debra admits that “I still miss her terribly every day,” but she copes by attending donor remembrance ceremonies, the U.S Transplant Games, and working with her local transplant organization, UNYTS (Upstate New York Transplant Services) to promote organ donation. “That allows me to honor her memory and keep her alive in my heart,” she noted.

“After our tragedy, many of our friends and others in our town of Wellsville have made the decision to become organ and tissue donors, so the loss of my special girl was not in vain,” affirmed Debra. “She will continue to bring joy into the lives of others, in the domino effect that has been created by donating her organs.”