As Sue Bennett and Sharron Jones met for their first time they sobbed and embraced like old friends.
They had longed for this moment. Now they were going to cherish it.
Sitting down, Sue lifted the bottom of her shirt and let Sharron feel the scar where doctors implanted the new liver that saved her life.
That amazing gift was donated by Sharron’s daughter Amy after her own life was cut short by an epileptic seizure 14 months earlier, aged just 24 years old.
Sue, 48, says: “There were a lot of tears. I was trying to keep my composure, but I felt so guilty that I was there and Amy wasn’t.
“We were hanging onto each other and I blurted out, “Can you forgive me?”
Sharron insisted there was nothing to forgive, then presented Sue with an album of photos and letters written by Amy’s friends and family.
Sue says: “Going through that book, I got to know who Amy was and felt closer to her. She wasn’t a stranger any more. She was my hero, full of life and deeply loved by her family.”
In return, Sue gave Sharron the gold medal she won in the 800 metres at the British Transplant Games weeks earlier. “It was all I had to offer her to say thank you,” admits Sue.
Sharron, 53, from Wrexham, says: “When she gave me that medal, my heart stopped. It was such an amazing thing she had achieved, I couldn’t believe she wanted me to have it.
“She has given me every single medal she has won since at the British, European, and World Transplant Games. Every one of them is absolutely priceless.
“I keep them in a memory box and every year I hang them on my Christmas tree.”
This weekend, Sue hopes to give Sharron a new medal by becoming one of a handful of transplant recipients to complete a half-ironman challenge.
She will swim 1.2 miles, cycle 61 miles, and finish up with a gruelling 13.1 mile run.
To make it even more special, the event in Sue’s native Staffordshire is taking place on the seventh anniversary of her transplant.
And for the first time Sharron will be there to cheer her on. She will join Sue’s husband Anthony, 50 and three children Millie, 19, Billy, 17, and Jack, 15.
Sharron says: “I’m so excited. I don’t think Amy even ran for the bus, so it’s amazing to think that her liver has helped Sue achieve so much.”
Sue first became seriously ill 15 years ago. Her weight plummeted, she began bruising, and she grew so tired she fell asleep in the middle of telephone calls.
Even worse was the itch that wracked her entire body. She had medicated baths and wrapped herself in zinc-soaked bandages, but it was still “torture”.
She was eventually diagnosed with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), a deadly liver disease that many patients can control with medication, but her condition continued to deteriorate.
Sue was put on the transplant waiting list in November 2014 and her brother volunteered to be a live donor, but she had lost so much weight that his liver was too big.
With time running out, she was moved to the urgent waiting list and finally she received the call she had been waiting for and was rushed to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham by ambulance for her transplant.
She says: “It felt like my last chance, but when I got there, they told me my donor hadn’t passed away yet. She was on life support with her mum by her bedside.
“I can’t put into words the utter devastation when I realised I had to wait for a girl to die, so I could live. I just wanted her to open her eyes and go home. I was on my knees crying.”
Amy never did wake up. Having suffered an epileptic seizure in her bathroom and fallen behind the door, no-one could reach her in time. Though paramedics revived her, she had her life support withdrawn four days later.
After saying goodbye, Sharron agreed to donate Amy’s organs. Her liver went to Sue, while her kidneys saving two other women.
Sharron says: “I don’t think I could have made that decision if we hadn’t talked about organ donation. We had the conversation because my sister-in-law Julie passed away waiting for new lungs.
“I didn’t expect to be donating Amy’s organs 18 months down the line, but I knew she would never have forgiven me if I’d said no. She was kind, caring, and funny, but she could be strong-willed.”
Sue’s transplant on 12th June, 2015, lasted nine hours and it was several days before she became fully aware of her surroundings.
“The first thing I remember is my husband brushing my hair,” she said. “Then I realised I didn’t itch anymore. I hadn’t felt that good in years.”
Sue immediately began searching for information about her donor, before sending an anonymous letter to Sharron along with pictures her children had drawn.
The pair met for the first time in August 2016 at a Cheshire hotel where Amy had worked. Over the last six years they have forged a friendship that will last a lifetime.
Sharron says: “I was worried about Sue during the pandemic, because she has been through so much and I knew she was more vulnerable after her transplant.
“It means so much to me, knowing that Amy is with her and is surrounded by a loving family. It’s enough to help me close my eyes to sleep at night and wake up again.”
That bond is just as special for Sue.
She says: “Amy gave me a whole new life. My illness made me realise how precious that is and I want to make the most of it.
“I know the disease could return. Some people need a second, or even a third transplant.
“But I can’t imagine losing this piece of Amy that I’ve been given. I’m holding onto it for Sharron and I’m going to look after it as best I can.”
For more information visit www.organdonation.nhs.uk and www.facebook.com/sharingyourwishes.
