Extraordinary People:
Brad Bode
Don and Charlene Brode, donor parents
Bedford County
Don:
Brad was a typical country boy who loved hunting and fishing, with a dream of one day being a pro-fisherman. He was also an outgoing, friendly and active 14-year-old, involved in school activities ranging from band to football and wrestling. Whenever Brad set his mind on a new goal, he’d accomplish it and go try something new. He was a really great kid, never one that was ashamed or embarrassed by his parents.
The day he died was the most unimaginable nightmare my wife and I have ever lived through.
It was February 6, 1996, and Brad was a freshman at Tussey Mountain Junior/Senior High School. I was at the school that afternoon to attend a pre-wrestling match meeting with Brad, his teammates and coaches, prior to that evening’s match. While I was talking with the coach, Brad headed out with four teammates to grab a slice of pizza -- I didn’t realize he had left nor did I realize that I would never see my son again.
The accident happened about two miles from the high school. A fellow teammate was driving behind the car when it was struck by a truck, so he came back to the school to tell us what happened. When I heard the news, it hit me -- I can’t explain it but I knew Brad was badly hurt.
Four of the boys, including Brad, were transported via helicopter to the hospital in serious condition. When I arrived at the hospital and stepped into Brad’s room, it was almost as if I felt him leave the room. Despite all of their efforts, the doctors told us that Brad was brain dead.
At that moment, while grieving over Brad, I turned to my wife and said "They’re going to ask us to donate his organs. How do you feel about that?"
Charlene:
When the woman at the hospital approached us about donating Brad’s organs, I thought "I’m not letting them cut up my son like that." I thought the worst about organ donation.
But then my husband and I began talking about it. He said, "What if Brad needed an organ? We’d want him to get one. We wouldn’t want another family to have to go through what we’re going through…losing a child."
Brad was able to donate all seven major organs and helped to prolong and improve the lives of four people, including a fellow Pennsylvanian, Stephanie Page.
About two years after Brad passed away, CORE sent us a letter from Stephanie and although they protected her identity and ours, we communicated anonymously for a year until our first meeting at CORE’s open house in Pittsburgh.
When we were introduced to Stephanie for the first time, I was shocked. Stephanie looked so sick. I couldn’t believe that we’d given our son’s organs to someone as ill as she appeared. However, after talking with her, we saw in her soul that there was a woman who wanted to live.
Throughout the past ten years, we’ve kept in contact with Stephanie through periodic phone conversations and visits. In 2000, the year Brad would have graduated from high school, Stephanie attended the graduation ceremonies with us. It was comforting to have her with us on such a special yet difficult day. We’ve also learned how much a part of Brad has come through in her. For example, she now enjoys football and wrestling, likes chocolate ice cream and eats Brad’s favorite meal -- ham, green beans and potatoes.
To see Stephanie today, so healthy, without diabetes and off her insulin, is such a blessing. She’s living a life of happiness now and it’s all because of Brad and the decision we made to donate his organs.
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