From The Heart
When Darlene Mitchell received a floral delivery recently, she thought it was from her husband, Denny Mitchell, for Valentine’s Day. “I said ‘Oh, Denny, you sent me these beautiful flowers, Thank you!’ Then I thought then that it might be from one of my boys, Brock or Conner,” said Darlene, who had received a donated heart transplant on May 25, 2018. Denny added that he “walked in the house and Darlene asked me if I had sent the flower arrangement she had just received, and I said, ‘No’.” After opening the envelope that came with the flowers, they realized it came from the family of her heart donor. The message was short and sweet. “Wishing you the very best in life.” Previously, Darlene had reached out with a letter to the donor’s family after the heart transplant through the New England Donor Service which requires six months before contact is initiated. Since then she has also sent Christmas cards through the organization which featured photos of her and her sons; both of whom are heart transplant recipients. Conner has also found out about his donor and visited the grave site in a midwestern state to pay his respects.
