Hayley Resk is a happy, healthy graduate student after receiving a partial liver transplant from the most important person in her life, her mother.
"When you find out your child is going to need a transplant, it's the first time as a parent you feel like there's nothing you can do," Hayley Resk's mom, Julie, explains. "We just needed to be around people, we needed to volunteer; we needed something positive to channel what we're dealing with into." Julie's struggle with her daughter's liver disease turned into a story of HOPE.
After years of waiting for and not receiving a donor liver, conversations with doctors and careful consideration, Julie donated a portion of her liver to Hayley. Today, Hayley is a graduate of the University of Oregon and living out her dreams, studying Marine Biology as a graduate student at the University of Florida.
Volunteering for Donate Life Northwest has been therapeutic for Hayley's parents, Julie and Jim Resk. Julie and Jim, a pediatrician, have volunteered at Donate Life Northwest golf tournaments and Lifesavers breakfasts, as well as participated in panel discussions and presented at Discover OHSU. Julie also served two terms as a board member. They are using their hands and voices to encourage more people to consider donation and save lives. The Resk family embodies the meaning of HOPE.
