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SALT LAKE CITY — Mary Alice Garza creates stunning works of art with delicate brushstrokes and skillful composition. But Garza, 32, who has autism and struggles to speak, was very, very sick.
"It just seems like such a miracle with all the details finely knit together," said Stacey Phillips, Garza's mother, who lives in Boise.
It took a boy's generosity, a family's tragedy and a brother's love to heal her.
"I made a dedication to my brother," said Cameron Norcross, 26, a kidney donor.
Norcross donated his kidney to Garza in honor of his little brother Tyson Ullibari, who died suddenly at age 18. Tyson was an organ donor, and his organs saved six people.
"It was really hard when he passed away, so I'm happy I get to share in the experience he had to help save some lives," Norcross said.
Norcross' parents sat beside his bed at University Hospital, wearing T-shirts that pictured their beloved son Tyson.
"This is him," said Crystal Ullibari, of Kearns, who pointed to her T-shirt. "He was a little sports player. He played everything."
The pain of Ullibari's loss was clear as she wiped away tears. "Tyson was so selfless. Even as a little kid, if he had one piece of candy left in his hand and one of his siblings would say, 'Tyson, can I have that?' — never did he hesitate."
By sheer coincidence, the operation was exactly one year to the day after Tyson died.
"I pulled my phone out and I looked at the date and I said, 'Cameron, do you know what date that is?' He said, 'Yeah, the second Tuesday in October.' I said, 'No, that's your little brother's heavenly birthday.'"
Doctors can't explain it.
"There are a lot of coincidences that happen in organ transplant — too many to be coincidences," said Dr. Jeffrey Campsen, a transplant surgeon at University Hospital who performed Norcross' operation. "Sometimes organs find people. It sounds corny, but I think they do."
Garza's mom had worried that potential donors might not realize her daughter's worth, how integral to their family she is. But the coincidences continued.
Ullibari said Tyson had a real soft spot for people with special needs. She said if he'd had a choice about who to give to, it would have been someone like Garza.
When word of this got to Phillips, she couldn't hold back tears. "It just feels like a miracle," she said. "It's overwhelming. I'm not sure he realizes the magnitude of the gift he gave, not just to her but the entire family."
"This is true heroism," said Dr. Thomas Chaly, a transplant surgeon at University Hospital who did Garza's surgery. "Truly courageous by the donors themselves, and I think it's inspiring to everyone to know there's true kindness out there. The recipient has received a true gift."
The medical miracle is helping Ullibari heal. "Instead of just focusing on the fact that we lost our baby on Oct. 6, we can say that our other baby saved someone's life," she said.
She, too, has decided to donate a kidney, continuing the chain of goodness, coming from heartache — and knitting one mother with another.
"I said, 'Thank you for being a part of our miracle,'" Phillips said.
All involved paint a beautiful picture of generosity and a legacy of love.
