Weekend Recap: February 6-8

On Friday, Derek and I took the day off from our respective workplaces to talk to the Anatomy & Physiology and Biology classes at Bishop Guertin in Nashua. We practiced the night before and I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t a bit rocky. But when our good friend Mike introduced us to the crowd of students, we fell into a groove right away. Derek encouraged the students to interrupt us with questions as they had them, and we were so glad that they had so many! The good people at the Chris Klug Foundation sent us a great big box of swag to give away so when a student asked a question they got sweet Donor Dudes shades.

The students asked thoughtful and interesting questions, and the 2 hours we spent with them flew by, for us at least. For Derek and me, talking to high school kids about the amazing organ that is the liver, what transplantation is like, and the importance of organ donation is a little nerve wracking, but mostly it’s an amazing opportunity. One of the students asked Derek if he wished he knew who his donor was, and he said, “Yes, and no. Yes because I wish I could say thank you in person to his family, and no, because in a way it gives me the opportunity to thank everyone who is an organ donor. An organ donor saved my life, so I am grateful to all organ donors.” And that’s really what it’s all about. Sharing our story in the hopes that people might consider organ donation and thanking everyone who has already checked the box.

I really like talking to a crowd, and the bigger the crowd, the better for me. Derek was nervous as this was pretty far outside of his comfort zone, but he was just amazing. He did such a good job of telling his story and answering everyone’s questions. Plus, he’s got a cold so he gets high marks for doing a great job even with the sniffles.

We stayed home the rest of the weekend to get Derek on the mend. But we did venture out on Sunday for a little walk. It’s hard to believe that by Tuesday we’ll likely have another 18″ of snow.

Have a great week!