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Thursday, M ay 7, 2015 - The IFP - H alton H ills - w w w .theifp.ca Page 9 • Supplying nursery stock for beautiful gardens everywhere. Our horticulturalists are ready to help you! • We are the Growers of over 250 ACRES of nursery stock • Visit one of the largest sales yards anywhere SALES & PRODUCTION YARD 656 Robson Rd. Waterdown ON tel : 905 689 7433 THE GARDEN CENTRE 383 Dundas St. E. Waterdown ON tel : 905 689 4631 www.connon.ca - S INCE 1906 - FOR SIGNIFICANT SAVINGS ASK US ABOUT OUR GROWER DIRECT PROGRAM PROFESSIONAL & KNOWLEDGEABLE - GROWERS OF QUAL ITY PLANTS & TREES - COMMUNITY A Mother's Day story: Daughter saves mom with organ donation This Mother's Day the Tavares fam- ily of Georgetown is going to cel- ebrate the same way they did last year with one big difference, the family matriarch is cancer-free af- ter receiving more than half of her adult daughter's liver. Jeannie Tavares-Lyons, 42, be- came a living donor for her mother when she learned in January 2014 that her mother might die. She had the surgery last spring. "I still cry thinking about it. I have a hurt in my heart that my daughter went under the knife for me," Maria Tavares says in Portuguese during a telephone interview. She is babysitting her newest grandson Nolan at her youngest daughter's house. She may not have had this opportunity without organ donation. A Roman Catholic who grew up thinking one must return to heaven whole is an unlikely spokesperson for the benefits of receiving another human's organ. The 66-year-old says her three adult children convinced her she had to do it. She says she was wor- ried her granddaughters ages 9, 11 and 14 (Alexa, Emma and Laura) at the time would end up motherless. For her part, Jeannie says when the doctors explained the limited options she knew she had to step up as a living donor regardless of her husband and daughters' concerns. "My middle daughter started to cry and said 'no', " Jeannie recounts the family's reaction. "My eldest asked her dad (Mark Lyons) what he thought. He said, you know your mom, once she gets an idea there is no stopping her." I wanted to make this a teach- able moment for my girls. It was the first time my kids saw me as some- thing other than their mom. I was a daughter too." According to the Canadian Liver Foundation, the donor surgery has a very low risk of death. Within a few months, the donor's liver regener- ates to within 90 per cent its original size. Waiting for a donated organ from By Nelia Raposo Special to The IFP the donor registry could take up to a year, by then her mom might be too sick to fight a spreading cancer. After several medical tests, Jeannie-- Maria's eldest child-- was declared a good candidate for the surgery that saved her. On April 28, doctors at Toronto Gen- eral Hospital cut through three inches of Jeannie's muscle to get 66 per cent of her liver. About two hours later, a nurse called on Maria who was waiting nervously in an- other hospital room with her hus- band and kids. Members of their large extended family filled the waiting room wearing t-shirts son Dan Tavares designed with the slo- gan "Keep calm and be an organ donor" on the front. The surgery lasted 11 hours. Health officials say only 26% of Ontarians are registered donors. That's 3.1 million out of an eligible 11.8 million. "It is important that we all take two minutes to register to donate, so that all Ontarians can count on the system to be there for them and their loved-ones in their time of need," said Dr. Eric Hoskins, On- tario's Minister of Health and Long- Term Care, in a media release. Recovering together, on Moth- er's Day Jeannie and Maria lay side by side nine days after coming Living donor liver recepient Maria Ro- sarinha Tavares holds her sixth and youngest grandchild Nolan Sonsogno. This photo was taken on Tuesday (May 5), a year after the surgery that saved her life. Photo by Tracey Sonsogno Recovering in hospital last year are Maria Rosarinha Tavares (left) and her eldest daughter Jeannie Tavares-Lyon, who donated more than half her liver to her mom. The pair are now healthy and planning to enjoy a special Mother's Day this year. Submitted photo home from surgery last spring. Maria turns to her daughter and says in Portuguese, "I have received the best gift ever." Her brother, Dan who, along with the other Tavares men is pre- paring a barbecue lunch, chimes in jokingly, "Great! How do we compete with that Mother's Day gift? That makes my plant look lame." This Sunday, the family will gather at Maria's house again and the ladies will let the men do the hosting again. Jeannie says it will be a Mother's Day tradition: one that she, her mom and sister appreciate. For more information on organ donation click www.beadonor.ca. Jeannie Tavares Lyons of Georgetown proudly stands in front of the Trans- plant Centre sign in Toronto General Hospital. Lyons is wearing a t-shirt designed by brother Dan Tavares. After donating part of her liver to her mother, Tavares Lyons is now a big supporter of organ donation.