Kaylea Curry

Type of Donation:          organs, tissue, and corneas

Age and Location:          Age 10 – Fairbanks, AK

Donation Date:             12/18/2015

Sponsor:                   Honored by LifeCenter Northwest

KAYLEA’S STORY

Kaylea Curry was an inquisitive, quirky, and honest 10-year-old girl who spoke her mind and inspired her large family of seven to walk their own paths and dare to be different.

“She was kind, she was honest to a fault, she would say exactly what she thought even if it probably wasn’t the right thing to say at the time, but she was very loving, very creative, very quirky,” says her mom, Christy Curry.

She loved animals. You could find her snuggling her Border Collie, Sadie, or Lila, her guinea pig. She also loved to rub her face on your arm like a kitten to show much she loved you. Kaylea loved the feel of soft things and refused to wear jeans for a year and half, opting instead for fleece pants. She had no concern for fashion.

As sweet as Kaylea was, she was also strong – a fierce spirit. She was outspoken and wanted to be a warrior. But not just any warrior – she wanted to be like Link, her hero in the video game The Legend of Zelda. “Definitely not the princess,” says Christy. “She was a force of nature so much stronger than this earthly body could contain.”

Kaylea had a medical condition that cut her life short. But Christy shares that Kaylea wasn’t taken in vain. This gift was given from a place of love, faith and hope as Kaylea’s final quest as the warrior she embodied, saving the lives of several others through the donation of her kidneys, liver, and heart valves. She also restored the sight of two children with the donation of her corneas.

One of Kaylea’s kidney recipients, Ron, a 59-year-old man from Washington state, wrote a letter to her family expressing his gratitude for Kaylea’s gift that saved him from a lifelong struggle with diabetes. What was even more special about his letter was that he shared his love of books and literature. Kaylea, a bookworm herself, would read four to five books at a time. Her family didn’t learn this until after her passing, but Kaylea would donate her books to the school library for others to enjoy.

Ron ended his letter with “Believe me when I say, beautiful Kaylea is here. She lives. She is loved. I did not know her, but she is a part of me now. She is, literally … Hope.”

The Currys are proud of their daughter who always lived life out loud, and they’re grateful to know that Kaylea made life possible not only for Ron, but also for so many other families. That’s the legacy of a true warrior.