Gareth Seah Ren Xiang, 14

School: Bukit Batok Secondary School

Topic: Letter of appreciation to donor family

Award: Second Place, Junior Category, 2021

Dear Donor family,

I am Gareth Seah, the Grandson of the recipient of the cornea donation from your fellow family member. I am writing this email today to express my gratitude towards the organ donor and his/her family. Words simply do not suffice how grateful my family and my grandmother are. Firstly, please accept our heartfelt condolences for the loss of your loved one. I am truly grateful and thankful for the amazing generosity shown by your family. I will never understand how heart-breaking it must have been dealing with the loss of your loved one, but deciding to donate their organs to help others is a true sign of generosity and greatness from an extraordinary family. Every day as we spend time with our Grandmother we are reminded how your selfless and thoughtful decision gave my grandmother a second chance at life. Me and my family will forever be thankful and grateful towards the donor and their family.

My Grandmother received the cornea transplant a year ago and since recovering from it her life has taken a turn for the better. She has started spending more time with our family and has become more happy and cheerful. Now thanks to the donation from your loved one she can fully enjoy these activities. She has recently picked up stitching as a new hobby and is hooked on making more and more new things for us to use. She spends hours at a time making different wearables and decorations for us to use. You should see her whenever she is stitching, the sense of pride in her eyes and the final product is truly heart-warming whenever she finishes another item. Before the transplant, she used to be depressed and kept to herself, she barely socialised with people and never seemed happy. However, after the transplant she immediately seemed happier and more social, it was if something clicked within her overnight. We finally got her to socialize with others and enjoy other activities with her friends and family.

My Grandmother is truly grateful for your generous decision to donate your loved one’s cornea. Your loved one will be remembered forever through the eyes of our grandmother and our family. He helped to change the life of a depressed elderly lady and made it into one full of joy and friendship. My grandmother is now truly able to enjoy the finer things in life, spending time with her family, socialising with friends, stitching items for her family as well as just watching the sun set. She can finally enjoy these things thanks to your generous decision and the donor will be in our hearts and minds forever.

I sincerely apologise if this letter brings about any grief from you. I understand that even hearing about the positive outcome does not take away the pain you have from losing a loved one. I just hope that hearing how your brave and thoughtful decision has helped to change the lives of others can help to provide closure for the passing of your loved one. Please accept our gratitude once again for your brave and generous decision. Thank you for taking the time to read my email.

With warmest wishes
Gareth Seah

Disclaimer: Please note that the views and opinions expressed in the essays for the Live On Festival 2021 are those of the participants and are not endorsed by the National Organ Transplant Unit (Ministry of Health).

To learn more about organ donation and organ transplantation in Singapore, please visit www.liveon.gov.sg