Boy's generosity lives on

SUN HERALD ^ | Dec 6, 2008 | By MICHAEL NEWSOM

[Islander7]

GULFPORT -- With what she says was inspiration from above, Deborah King made her decision when it was clear her 11-year-old son wasn't going to survive the illness that hit him Saturday.

King donated her son Cameron Emanuel King's organs, knowing it was what the child, remembered by friends for his generosity, would want. And the move has given hope to other families waiting for organs for their seriously ill children, which Cameron's survivors said comforts them.

"The Lord just laid it on my heart," King said. "He was a healthy little boy and he said he always wanted to help anybody.... I wanted to see other kids live."

She said Friday that, at last report, eight organ matches had been found, including a teenage girl in Florida who needed lungs and a boy who needed a liver. King said she believes both have already received transplants.

The King family doesn't know the identities of those who received the organs and several Alabama medical groups involved in the case said such information is heavily protected by privacy laws. Sometimes going through the appropriate channels to receive the information that is releasable can take weeks, they said.

After giving much thought to having another child, just a few months before her 40th birthday King and her husband, Louis Ladell King, had Cameron.

"He has truly been a blessing to us," she said, noting her son and disabled husband spent nearly every day together.

[Islander7]

"That says volumes about the kind of spirit that he had," Hartwell said. "... That's the little Cameron I know."

[Trailerpark Badass]

Rest in peace, little man.

[freedumb2003]

What a heartbreaking situation — prayers for the family

[mosquewatch]

From a world of hell, great news.

Great post.

[End Times Sentinel]

"He has truly been a blessing to us," she said, noting her son and disabled husband spent nearly every day together.

That's just heartbreaking. I can't begin to fathom what that must be like for his family.

God Bless these wonderful, generous people.

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

what a wonderful family!

May they now receive the continued blessings for their generous gesture!

[SouthDixie]

"He has truly been a blessing to us,"

What a brave young lad, children are gifts and our teachers.

Prayers to his family.

[whatshotandwhatsnot]

God’s highest blessing to the King family.

I know in whose arms Cameron now rests and I pray his loving family may take peace from that knowledge.

[OneWingedShark]

>I know in whose arms Cameron now rests and I pray his loving family may take peace from that knowledge.

Indeed.

[pray4liberty]

God bless you Cameron, you are a hero on earth and an angel in Heaven.

[RushIsMyTeddyBear]

God bless this BIG man and his family. Prayers of comfort and strength going their way. Such a great story. ^()^ Heaven will be so glad to receive him in all it’s glory.

[Carley]

In the midst of their grief this family gave the gift of hope to others who were suffering.

Blessings to them all.

[shetlan]

Cameron was a "healthy" 11 year old boy who died of a "stroke" that "hit him" in one day? His Dad was "disabled" and his Mom was "over 40" and eight kids received his transplanted organs? I find this creepy.

[ElayneJ]

What an excellent young man. Prayers for the family.

[pray4liberty]

Strokes can happen to anyone, yes, even children.

[kactus]

Very sorry for his family’s loss, and admire their willingness to help others survive.

Information to share:
My fourth child suffered bad migraines and then in high school experienced many things...double vision, inability to speak, use his hand, etc. Fortunately, his experiences were transitory. The Neurologist was determined to find the cause before he suffered permanent damage. He ruled out the problem being in his brain and sent him to a cardiologist.

Doctor did a TEE..(thing that goes down the throat) to find the hole in the heart. And it is a natural hole that is supposed to close at birth. It estimated that 1 in 4 people it does not close. It’s called a PFO...Patent Foramen Ovale. (Hopefully, I spelled it right)

Fix was “relatively” easy. A specialist in another city ran a patch up through an artery in his groin up to his heart, popped open the patch like an umbrella.

Anyway, my son no longer experiences the terrible migraines and is fine, graduating from college this month.

It’s important to share this information because it is probably happening to lots of young people.... but symptoms, if temporary, are just passed off as “that was weird, but now I’m fine.” (1 out of 4, so it’s a real possibility)

A young teacher in our town had a “stroke” and it took them some time to figure out it was a PFO. (She was NOT a patient of my son’s neurologist.) I had never ever heard of PFOs, but feel they should be a topic written about as knowledge could help save a life.

We, as a family, were very fortunate with our neurologist and his determination. I exchanged e-mails with a Mom whose son was left with a fist size of damage in to his brain due to a stroke caused by his PFO leaving him with speech and motor problems. Part of her heart-break was the cruelty of his fellow students to his condition.

[steelyourfaith]

Powerful story. Very sad yet heart warming. Beautiful and noble family response to tragedy.

[NellieMae]

Prayers for that family.