Cameron Chana was the eldest of four children and a born leader, said his mother, Lori. “He led our family into the new areas of family, sports, church, travel, adolescent and teenage relationships and education. He was also truly gifted at developing relationships. As a son, brother, relative or friend, Cameron set the benchmark on caring, supporting and loving others.”

During his high school years, Cameron worked at a pharmacy, volunteered at a hospital and was very involved with the Chana family’s church. He went on mission trips to Seattle, Czech Republic and Dominican Republic and was always focused on kids – helping, guiding and directing them to focus on the positive things in life.

Cameron attended college at Eastern Illinois University (EIU) and became very involved with the Sigma Pi fraternity. He graduated from EIU with a degree in marketing on May 9, 2009, and was accepted into their MBA program to begin on June 15. Tragically, twenty-two-year old Cameron was killed in a bus accident two weeks before he would have started his MBA.

“The loss of any child is devastating and no parent is prepared to deal with the myriad of issues when their child unexpectedly dies,” said Lori. “Cameron continues to help his family, even in his death. When the organ donation representative approached us at the hospital, she provided us with a document that Cameron had executed years before. He had taken the decision of organ donation out of our hands by taking all the appropriate steps to be an organ donor long before his unexpected death.

“Our family is now focused on spreading the word and the importance of signing up to be an organ donor, focusing on the positive impacts it has on others in a time of extreme pain and grief,” continued Lori. “We are hoping to meet the people who have been given the gift of life from Cameron and those whose lives have been significantly enhanced because of him.”