Wendy Bolling began struggling with her vision early in life. When her sight took a turn for the worse in 2021, she had corneal transplants that gave her back her independence and led to the start of an amazing relationship with the family of the donor, Timothy Page, jr., who made her gift of sight possible.

Wendy remembers wearing glasses when she was in third grade, and later having to wear hard contact lenses due to her severe astigmatism. When she was 19 years old, she had Radial Keratotomy (RK)* surgery, which successfully improved her vision. However, 20 years later her vision dramatically changed, becoming as bad as it had been before her RK surgery.

“My vision did a 180,” Wendy explains. “My corneas were so distorted there was not a good prescription that would allow me to see clearly. Everything, even with glasses, always looked distorted or fuzzy.” In 2020, she tried new scleral lenses which helped but were uncomfortable and hard to maintain.

Then in July 2021, a bacterial infection began to rob Wendy of what vision she had left. By August, she was essentially blind and in constant pain. The infection had made daily life extremely difficult. Not only could she not drive or work, she suffered severe migraines that forced her to be in a dark, quiet room. Her mother moved in with her to help. “If was hard to have to depend so much on others,” she adds.

Thanks to her doctors at Duke University Eye Center, medication slowly cleared up the infection. But it became apparent that Wendy would require corneal transplants in both eyes to regain her sight.

“When the doctor told me I would need corneal transplants, my heart sank,” she says. “I thought ‘oh, my gosh, what if they don’t take, what if it doesn’t work and I am never going to see again?’ I was so nervous, but I knew I had the best doctor. And he would make sure it all went well.”

The transplant on her left eye was done in late October and four days later, Wendy was already seeing more clearly than ever. “It was remarkable! To be blind and receive the gift of sight again… I was so grateful that it is hard to even put into words!”

The transplant on her right eye was done in early January with the same positive results. By March, Wendy was able to drive, work a full day and live her life again. “I felt as though I was given another chance,” she says.

Like many transplant recipients, Wendy was inspired by the gift she received to reach out in gratitude to the families whose loved ones had made her miracle possible through eye donation. With the donor family’s permission, Wendy was able to get in touch with Tim’s mother, Sararecia Long, as well as his sister, Teioyannah Page.

Wendy and Tim’s family, including his mother, his sister and his daughters, met for a beautiful afternoon this past October. And when they met, “it was like we had known them for years,” says Wendy. “They are wonderful people. I can never thank them enough.”

For Tim’s mother, the opportunity to connect with Wendy and to know that her son had made a difference in someone’s life was more than a blessing. “To say that it was a blessing would be an understatement,” says Sararecia. “I love my son. He was a loving person — loved his family, loved his daughters, loved the Lord. And he was well liked… to meet him was to know him.”

Wendy and Sararecia both agreed that they should get together every year. However, they both doubted that they would be able to wait that long to see each other again.

Read more about Tim in the upcoming Wendy and Tim’s Story, Part 2.

*Radial Keratotomy (RK) is a surgical procedure designed to re-shape the cornea to improve the patient’s vision.

The family of donor Geraldine “Gerry” Madden provided the story of her amazing life.

“In talking about writing her obituary, our family found that there were clear main themes in my mother’s life; her love for her family (extended, immediate, grandkids; everyone, she was the glue that held everyone together); her love of her friends; her fierce initiative and love of her career and getting things done; her strong faith; her life of service to others and compassion; and her creativity and love of creating things. That may sound like too much for one person to accomplish in their life but I assure you, we are not embellishing or exaggerating the full life she lived.  As the obituary says, Gerry Madden was a relentless force for love and light. All of us feel her loss deeply, and will forever.Read More

Frankie was the kindest person I’ve ever known. He had the biggest heart and would do anything for anyone; especially those who he loved. He had the most beautiful smile that would light up any room he walked into.

Frankie was the life of the party. He was so gregarious and easy to talk to. He grew up as a child actor and fashion runway model. Frankie also had Asperger’s Syndrome which caused him a lot of stress and anxiety. The more time he spent with his friends, the more he noticed his differences.

I wish Frankie could have seen how beautiful he was and known how much he meant to everyone who knew him. He is so loved and missed. Frankie was such a giving and kind person that I wanted to honor his decision to be an organ donor.

To whomever receives this precious gift, we hope it brings you peace, good health and a new excitement for life.

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Emily Beyea was only 10 years old when she passed away. However, in that time she managed to spread a lifetime of love, caring, joy and silliness throughout her world. “She was a sassy, outspoken, beautiful, activist, who saw the world as it should be… and saw the best in people,” says her mom, Tyler.

Emily’s love for helping others made her family’s choice to donate her organs and eye tissue an obvious one.

From an early age, she found many causes to get involved with, from sea turtle care to national park conservation to polar bear protection. She was a regular volunteer at the nonprofit Tyler works for, which feeds children at risk for hunger. Emily even created an “adopt-a-thon” there where each child could “adopt” a stuffed animal — most of which were from her own collection.

She loved the sand and the sea, enjoying vacations with her mom, dad (Bill) and older brother (Billy) to Jockey’s Ridge in the Outer Banks. And she was always joking, making funny videos and talking with anyone she met. “She was the silliest person you would ever meet,” Tyler explains. “Emily just loved doing simple things. She brought so much brightness into the world.”

Although an undiagnosed food allergy took her life, Emily lives on in many ways through the immeasurable amount of compassion, happiness and generosity she inspired around her. Emily’s family still comes across funny video clips of her that she didn’t get around to sharing with them. They continue to contribute to causes she supported, and they draw strength from knowing that she would want them to keep reaching out to help others. “It can be hard to get out of bed some days,” says Tyler. “But I know Emily would be none too pleased if I didn’t.”

Because of how Emily lived to help people, the decision to donate wasn’t even a question. Of course, it is what Emily would have wanted them to do. And it provides them with some measure of comfort to know that her eyes and heart have made a life-changing difference for others.

“Knowing there are people out there who see and live through her, helps so much in our healing,” says Tyler. “Her expressive eyes, who saw the world in a different way, full of wonder and whimsy, and her huge heart, used to love and be loved by all.”

The heartbreak of losing their daughter led Tyler and Bill to start a local chapter of Compassionate Friends, a support group and network for parents who have lost children. The couple is also active in allergy awareness and organ donor organizations. “The lessons Emily has taught us are: Be Kind, Live Simply and Be Silly,” Tyler adds. “This is how we try to get through each day without her.”

Our daughter Kelly would love to know that she was able to help someone see better. She was the most selfless, caring person who made all the rest of us better for being loved by her. We miss her every minute but there is some comfort in knowing how many people she touched in her short life and how much good is still happening in her memory. Thank you for accepting our (her) gift. We are forever grateful to have had such a daughter. 

Our best wishes, 

– Pam and Jim Bulak, parents of donor Kelly Bulak

This sketch by Kelly Bulak, MSHP class of 2022, depicts three buildings in the Wilson Farm area of the North Central neighborhood in Charleston, SC. Bulak sketched this drawing as part of an Area Character Appraisal for Preservation Studio in the spring of 2021.