Adam Lively was a mischievous, fun-loving young man who was especially close to his older brothers, David and Mark. Adam was 22 and enjoying life as a senior philosophy major at East Tennessee State University when on a rainy night in January 1998, he was in a car with friends when the driver swerved to miss an animal. The vehicle rolled over and Adam struck his head. He was kept on life support for four days before he was declared brain dead. Six weeks prior, he had told his mother he wanted to be an organ donor if anything should happen to him. "Adam made the decision for us, and it is a decision we have never regretted," said his father David.

Adam's Story

Adam Fletcher Lively was the youngest of our three sons. He was especially close to his brothers, David and Mark. The three brothers left family and friends with fond memories of all sorts of good-natured mischief, most which was Adam's idea.

"That close bond continues today," said their father, David. "That strength is, in part, because they miss Adam so much."

At the time of his donation, Adam was a 22-year-old senior philosophy major at East Tennessee State University. He also participated in a fraternity where he often the center of attention when it came time to share stories and join in the fun.

On the rainy night of January 16, 1998, Adam and several of his friends were returning to school when the young man who was driving swerved to miss an animal and lost control. The vehicle rolled and Adam hit his head.

"We had four days of hopeful news, then it turned bad," David recalled. "On the morning of the 20th, Adam's nurse and doctor informed us that the battle to save Adam had been lost. The Adam we had known was gone."

Shortly after, the family was approached by a representative of Tennessee Donor Services. Six weeks before Adam's accident, he told his mother that if anything ever happened to him, he wanted to be an organ donor. "Adam had made the decision for us," David affirmed. "It is a decision that we have never regretted."

David went on to work with Donate Life Tennessee. While staffing a booth, he had a chance to meet one of Adam's classmates.

"Her words will always stay with me: 'I loved Adam because he always made me laugh,'" he said. "That is who Adam was."