Honor Hero: Andrew - Gave Them a New Life

Andrew Kane. 17 years young

07/04/1988 – 24/12/2005

Hi, my name is Lynne.

Back in 2005 My husband Laurie and I got the worst phone call of our lives. It was to say our son Andrew, just 17 years old, had been hit by a car. His workmates had run back to his workplace and they were the ones who called us. He was just ten minutes from home, crossing the road where he shouldn’t have.

That phone call was the worst in my life. We rushed down to the accident site to see the ambulance take off with our son in it. We went straight to the Alfred hospital in Melbourne, approx a 40 min drive. They would not let us see him but they asked us to give any details that may describe him. This is every parent's nightmare as you go blank to think of anything. The child you see every day and yet you find it hard to come up with distinguishing details that will make him different from everyone else, not knowing how he looks after an accident, if he is disfigured etc.

It felt like hours passed before we are allowed to see him. He was sent up for surgery due to a shattered lower leg, broken pelvis, ruptured spleen and other injuries I just could not take in at the time. The ER doctor told us there was a 3% chance of survival. My heart dropped.

I approached the nurses when we were waiting, to state that Andrew wanted to be an organ donor.

Time is still confused in my mind as to how and when the next steps happened. Within the next 24 hours, Andrew was pronounced brain dead. The trauma doctors spoke to us and said they were aware Andrew was noted as a donor and would then put in the call to the donor team.

The LifeGift – now known as Donatelife – person came to talk to us and fill in the relevant forms. There is a blur here but we agreed to donate any and everything that was possible. Andrew donated his liver, heart, kidney, and his pancreas went to research and leg veins into storage for later use.

We have received letters from the three recipients and know that Andrew gave them a new life.