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Brian was registered with the Eyebank for Sight Restoration. One of the biggest misconceptions about organ donation is that some people think it's based on who you know.
"You're not in by name, you're in by number and need," Ann said. Brian's need was special. They try to match donors and recipients by age to assure the longest possible lifespan for the donated organ. Brian needed people under 20 years of age. What worked in his favor, however, is that the cornea is a single-celled organ. There's no cross-typing which makes donation easier.
Three weeks later, the Eyebank had a cornea for his right eye. The Holcolmbs received the call June 12th, 1996, two days before Brian's eighth grade graduation.
Surgery was arranged quickly because corneal tissue can only be preserved for three to five days. At 6 a.m. the next morning, Brian went into surgery at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary.
During the surgery, which lasted an hour and a half, Speaker used a machine that he likened to a huge cookie cutter to remove the central eight millimeters of Brian's diseased cornea. "The cornea is a 12 millimeter disk shaped like the side of a basketball," Speaker said.
He then stitched the same portion of the donor cornea onto Brian's eye with a single suture, thinner than a human hair.
When the procedure was done, they shared a sense of excitement and fear. "You're giving away what he was born with and you're praying to God that someone else's is going to work. If it doesn't, there's no way to get his back," Ann said.
At the end of the day, Speaker took the family into a room with dimmed lights and removed Brian's patch. Brian said, "Oh my God."
Everyone grew anxious and Speaker asked him what was wrong. "Look at my mother," he replied. Brian was able to truly see his mother for the first time in his life.
On October 2nd, the day before Brian's 13th birthday, he received the second cornea transplant in his left eye. With two functioning eyes, Brian was able to discover the world around him that had been indistinct for so many years.
"It's like being born again," he said.
Brian received the corneas of two 15- year- old girls, both of whom died in separate automobile accidents because they weren't wearing seatbelts. And because of them, Brian received a miracle. With glasses, he now has 20/30 vision.
"They told me I'd never drive a car, fly a rocket ship or plane," he said. While he hasn't tired the latter two, Brian enjoys driving. And the freshman at St. Francis College has his sights set on becoming a stockbroker one day.
Then it was Erin's turn. She had success with the corneal transplant in her right eye and she hopes that the new year will bring success for her left. Speaker is confident about her future. "As she gets older, her immune system will get a little less reactive." One day, Erin plans to return the gift given to her by becoming an eye doctor.
But as the Holcombs have moved on, they haven't forgotten the people who changed their lives. After each surgery, while Ann was thanking God for her child's new gift, another mother was somewhere mourning for her lost child. "Why did their child have to die and why is my child going blind," she wondered.
Ann has since written to the families to let them know how precious their children are to her and her family.
"Their child lives on in Brian and Erin and is loved and hugged and kissed everyday. Their child's gift brought a fantasy into reality," Ann said tearfully.
For a free, informative brochure about organ donation, call The Donor Network at 1-800-GIFT-4-NY. Remember, just one organ and tissue donor can save up to eight lives and enhance the lives of dozens of others like Brian and Erin.
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