Southwest Transplant Alliance

Struggling emotionally with the impending death of her 23-year-old son, Brandon Oliver, Pat Oliver Robinson made the decision to donate his organs so others may have the gift of life.

It was a friend, James Goforth, who helped her make the decision six months ago.

“He told me, ‘Pat, you donate those organs, don’t let them go to waste.’ And I’m glad I did it even though it was a tragedy to lose my son. He saved not one life but five lives.”

In late August the Port Arthur family received a letter from Southwest Transplant Alliance of Baytown. The letter offered condolences to the family for the loss of their son and told of the lives he saved.

“His right kidney and pancreas were transplanted into a 29-year-old woman. She was suffering from severe diabetes mellitus that caused her to go into kidney and pancreas failure.

“A 46-year-old woman received Brandon’s left kidney. She was suffering from severe high blood pressure which caused her to go into kidney failure. She is married with four children and now lives dialysis-free.

“Brandon’s liver went to a 56-year-old man who was suffering from scarring of the liver which causes the liver to not work properly. He is married with three children.

“The recipient of Brandon’s lungs is a 66-year-old man. He is married with two children and one grandchild. He was suffering from scarring of the lungs that causes the lungs to not function properly.

“Brandon’s heart was transplanted into a 69-year-old man who was suffering from a type of heart failure that is caused by the heart not pumping correctly. He is married with two daughters.

“I sincerely appreciate your thoughtfulness. In a time of sorrow, your willingness to consider the needs of others is truly admirable,” Johanna Nelms, Organ Recovery Services Coordinator, said in the letter.

Brandon Oliver was a member of the first graduating class of Memorial High School and had earned the distinction of being a Texas Scholar by completing at least two college credit courses while in high school.

He died from a gunshot wound June 25, the details of which Robinson chose not to elaborate on for this story.

While struggling with the cycle of grief, Robinson’s cousin, Sethius Rogers, and his wife, Taneisha, came forward with help in the form of a book and with unwavering faith in God. The spiritual young Beaumont couple marked specific passages in a book titled “Sanctuary: A Devotional Bible for Women.”

When Robinson is feeling down, she picks the book up and is strengthened, she said.

“What you can do for me is to ask God to keep strengthening me,” she said.

“People ask me, ‘how do you do it,’ I answer, ‘it’s God.’”

The Port Arthur woman still has some down times in her life. Her husband, David Robinson, and son, Damond Oliver, are there for her during those times. But it was a conversation with her friend, Denise Griffin, that put a spark in her life.

Griffin received a kidney transplant about two years ago and now looks forward to one day meeting the family of the person who’s gift saved her life, Robinson said.

“I think of the families who received Brandon’s organs and hope to meet them one day,” she said. “It would be up to us, we would have to tell the Transplant Alliance our wishes. My friend Denise waits every day to meet the people who gave her life.”

The gift has come full circle. Robinson now spreads literature about the importance of being an organ donor and has made plans to donate her organs to help others just as Brandon did.