Matt McMahon (age 27)

Matt was born Jan 6, 1978 in Ontario , Canada and grew up with his younger brother Mark in the same home until he was 24. Matt and Mark both had many special friends who also grew up in the same area and are still friends to this very day.

One of Matt's most memorable vacations was a trip we took to London , UK . It was only for 10 days but we crammed so much in to that short space of time, seeing all the sights that he'd only read about before. Matt was such a huge fan of the Beatles , especially John Lennon and wanted, more than anything to go to Abbey Road . I'll never forget the look on his face as he was crossing that crosswalk back and forth. One thing I wanted to do was to scatter a small amount of Matt's ashes across Abbey Road and I did just that a couple of years after he passed. I'm sure he was looking down at me giving me his approval.

Matt's love of art and photography is something that I am so grateful for. He has left me a treasure of pictures that I am able to do so many projects with. Some of his artwork is displayed on the ward at the hospital that took such good care of Matt for so many years. Computers was also another one of Matt's favorite pastimes and again something that I am grateful for as Matt taught me so much and enabled me to be able to do all of my “Matt Projects”

Matt did well up until his early 20s, that's when his lung function started to deteriorate. He decided in the beginning of 2005 that the quality of his life was just not something that he wanted to deal with anymore and thus began the beginning of his transplant journey. He said “I can live with the symptoms but I can't live with the restrictions any longer”

He was listed on April 1 st , 2005 and only had to wait 4 weeks for new lungs. Unfortunately the cepacia that Matt grew in his old lungs got in to his new lungs and then into his bloodstream. Matt never had the chance to be able to take that first breath with his new lungs. After two weeks the Drs. explained that they had done everything in their power for Matt but it was now obvious that nothing more could be done for him. Mark and I had to make the most agonizing decision of our lives and that was to give permission to let Matt go.

On May 15 th , 2009 at 12 noon Matt passed and part of my heart went with Matt on that day.

Although the outcome of the surgery was devastating for us I am so very grateful that Matt had the hope for a normal life because of transplant. I read how others are suffering so much in the final stages waiting for lungs and am so relieved that Matt didn't get as far as that before his call came.