Sudbury honours organ donors, their life-saving gifts

Greater Sudbury recognized Organ Donation Awareness Month at the downtown library on Friday.

The event, now in its 27th year, was organized by the Irish Heritage Club of Sudbury.

Politicians, advocates and those with lived experience shared their stories.

A sister’s gift: ‘My Earth Angel’

Laurie Racine was one of them.

“It’s going to be almost 28 years that I’ve had a kidney from my sister,” she said.

“Bless her heart. I tell you, she’s my Earth angel.”

Racine was receiving dialysis four times a day at her home and caring for her young children.

“I was losing my vision,” she said.

“After 15 months of dialysis, (my sister) decided to do that and it was the best day of my life. I was off dialysis onto a lot of medication.”

Racine said her sister is doing well and they regularly meet up for visits.

Racine’s daughter-in-law, Ashley Labelle, also shared her story. Labelle is an Irish Heritage member and organ donor advocate. She said there’s a lot of misconceptions about who can become a donor.

“You could have went through chemotherapy. You could have had medical issues,” she said.

“You can be old, you can be young, age, illness, anything is not a factor. There are so many new different innovations and things coming out in the world, new discoveries, new experiments that they’re realizing that people that, you know, were even smokers can now potentially become donors.”

First ‘heart-in-a-box’ transplant in northeastern Ontario

May 9 marked the two-year anniversary since Labelle’s sister, Angele, passed away. Angele, who would have turned 30 this year, became the first heart-in-a-box recipient in northeastern Ontario.

The advanced procedure keeps the heart beating during transport. Labelle said it brings her and her family some comfort that Angele’s heart has given someone else life.

“Just knowing that she’s saved somewhere else, even if it wasn’t just her heart, if it was just her eyes, you know, that would have been like she helped someone else. So that’s how it helps us to grieve,” Labelle said.

Push to change policies

Nickel Belt MPP and NDP health critic France Gélinas said in Sudbury, 55 per cent of eligible donors have registered, which she attributes to the work of the Irish Heritage Club.

“In parts of Sudbury, we reach almost 75 per cent in and around Coniston and Wanipitae,” she said.

“Same thing in around Garston and Falconbridge. We hit over 60 per cent.”

Gélinas said that about 1,724 people in Ontario are waiting for an organ transplant.

Gélinas has put forth a bill requesting that Ontario law changes so that you can opt out of becoming a donor, rather than opt in.

“That would increase the number of organs and would help a lot of people would save the health system a ton of money,” she said.

“It’s expensive to keep people on dialysis. We want to provide the care, and absolutely we should provide that care. But it’s difficult on them, on their family.”

Additionally, at Queen’s Park last week, Robbie’s Law reached its second reading, following unanimous support. The bill would permanently honor donors on hospital walls.

“There would be six months lapse between the time of death and the time of honor,” Gélinas said.

“But, to have those memorials in our hospital is one more way for people to think about becoming a donor, to talk to their family, about becoming a donor and, in a way, to say thank you.”

Racine said she is so grateful that she was given a second chance at life.

“All these things that have happened to me since I’ve had my transplant and wouldn’t have happened otherwise,” she said.

For LaBelle, organ donation is less about the end of a journey and more about a new beginning.

Anyone can register to be a donor online or in person at any ServiceOntario location.

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