Gift of life story

In July of 2000, Greg Satterlee was 35 years old and in seemingly perfect health when one day he sat down to eat a meal and realized he wasn’t able to swallow. Over the next week, he became very ill. On August 10, Greg was sent to New England Medical Center in Boston where he was diagnosed with complete liver failure, although the cause was unclear. Three days later he was placed on the UNOS waiting list for a liver transplant. The call came a mere 5 days later. 

“I was very lucky to get a donated liver so quickly,” Greg recalls. “However, I was ranked very highly on the list because I was extremely ill. My doctor told me at the time I went on the list that if I didn’t receive a liver within two weeks, I would have died.” His second chance at life came from Darren, an 18 year-old man from Bermuda who suffered brain death due to a motorcycle accident. Darren’s mother decided to donate his organs; giving Greg and four other people the gift of life. In November of that year, he was able to meet his mother’s donor, and thank her for helping save his life. 

Today, multiple years later, Greg is back at work full-time. He enjoys boating, piping with the New York State Corrections Emerald Society Pipe Band and golfing. He is a volunteer with CDT and is committed to raising awareness so that people understand how important it is to discuss organ donation with their families.