Ambassadors of Life Refiring, Not Retiring

April 2022

By Kim Gilmore, LifeQuest Public Education Coordinator

Selfless love begins and ends with sacrifice. Those of us who work with organ donor families have a front-row seat to the most extraordinary acts of generosity: parents who are so inspired by their only son’s choice to donate his organs that they are willing to relive the details of his fatal accident on live radio; a widow who eagerly donates a kidney to her late husband’s organ recipient 16 years later; or a mother who donates her young boy’s organs to save lives even after he has made the tragic decision to end his own life.

In the midst of their grief, donor families have one thing in common. The goal of their giving is to give others the chance to live.

Joe and Jody Hair dedicated their lives to the mission of promoting organ donation following the death of their 19-year-old daughter, Madison, on June 22, 2012. Madison was a registered organ donor, and she saved the lives of four people.

In the years since Madison shared her Gifts of Life, the Hairs have honored their daughter’s legacy in a very public way, appearing on TV and radio in and around Bay County, Fla., where they reside.  Their warm smiling faces have grown familiar, if not comforting to many in their community.  Their strength and compassion are inspiring.

The Hairs both teach full time at Mosley High School while juggling the demands of daily life and a family. Yet somehow, they find time to host multiple assemblies each year at Mosley where they share Madison’s donation story with hundreds of incoming freshmen.

By contributing to the lives of others, the Hairs chose a journey of healing and influence they could never have imagined. A student who made the decision to register as an organ donor after attending an assembly at Mosley and who then later passed away, saved the lives of four people through his gifts of donation.

Dedication to organ donation is woven into every aspect of the Hair’s lives.  A picture of the ambulance carrying Madison’s heart to its new owner hangs above Joe’s desk at school. A photobook full of memories of Madison is displayed in the couple’s home. Both are meant to spark conversation about donation.

Not surprising, their love for Madison’s recipients is most palpable. The Hairs have been in touch with all four of their daughter’s organ recipients, and they have met with two of them so far. They hope to meet them all someday.

LifeQuest Ambassador Katie Walton received the lifesaving gifts of a liver and kidney from Madison. She and the Hairs met for the first time just a few months ago near their home in Lynn Haven. They connected instantly.

Jody and Katie recently took center stage in the Gretchen Nelson Scott Fine Arts Center at Mosley for National Donate Life Month. Katie wore a bright orange sweater, Madison’s favorite color. Jody presented Katie with an orange-tinted bouquet. Nearly 500 students and staff and a dozen or so of the Hair’s family members attended. It was their first opportunity to talk about Madison together publicly.  It was also the last time Jody will ever share her daughter’s story as a teacher at Mosley. Both Joe and Jody are retiring from teaching at the end of the 2022 school year.

                      

My heart sank when I heard the news that the Hairs planned to retire from teaching. Would they also give up promoting organ donation? Having had the privilege of working with the Hairs for the past three years, I’ve come to lean on the ease with which they talk about their daughter’s accident and gifts. Of course, it isn’t at all easy for them.

Nine years, 10 months and some days. That’s how long it’s been since the Hairs felt the warm touch of their precious daughter, Madison. It is impossible to calculate how many people have registered as organ donors or the number of lives that have been saved thanks to their humility and selflessness in that time. Fortunately, I won’t need to. The Hairs plan to travel some and then get right back out there telling others about the importance of registering your decision to become an organ donor.

Most people want to know their lives matter. Joe and Jody Hair want you to know that Madison’s life mattered. I have often heard Jody say, “This is what Madison would have wanted.”