AUGUST IS NATIONAL MINORITY DONOR AWARENESS MONTH, a time for Life Connection of Ohio, the non-profit organization that serves families and saves lives through organ donation, to spread the word—especially in communities of color—that everyone has the power to donate life. One person has the incredible ability to save eight lives through organ donation and heal 125 more through tissue donation!
Sixty percent of the more than 100,000 people currently on the national transplant waiting list are from multicultural communities.
The need for organ donation and transplantation is more pronounced in communities of color where disproportionately higher rates of diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease contribute to kidney failure.
Although people of different ethnicities can donate to each other, achieving a more diverse donor registry would increase everyone’s chances of receiving a second chance at life.
Donor heroes like Karll Williams make life possible for grateful recipients.
Karll loved life, and he exuded joy and generosity. “He would have happily given you anything, even the shirt off his back. Well… almost anything. He wouldn’t give you his Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. He loved those,” Karll’s mother, Karla, said.
Every day, Karla looked forward to the warm greeting she would receive from Karll, the oldest of her four children, when she would get home from work. “He would open my car door and reach out his hand and ask me about my day,” Karla said. “He was so considerate and loving.”
A man of many talents, Karll would listen to classical music and then play it by ear on the piano. He also played guitar, wrote poetry, was “the baddest” basketball player, and loved delivering corny jokes.
Karla had a strong bond with Karll, whom she considered her rock. “On Christmas Eve 1990, I had a miscarriage, and on October 14, 1991, I had Karll. That was God saying we need the first one, and you need this one. That boy was prayed for and so wanted,” Karla said.
Karla’s little miracle had one of his own. Karll’s son, Ry’Lee, was born in 2013. “He was a very proud dad. He said Ry’Lee was going to be a basketball player when he grew up, so he got him his first pair of little Jordans,” Karla said. “After Ry’Lee was born, Karll got two jobs and wanted to be the best father.”
But that dream was taken away from Karll, and Karla’s world stopped on January 27, 2014. “Someone tried to rob Karll and then shot and killed him on my front porch,” Karla said. But 22-year-old Karll had the last word. He saved five lives through organ donation and healed many more through tissue and cornea donation.
“I remember when Karll turned 18, we were at the BMV, and a young man behind the desk asked him if he wanted to be an organ donor. After I explained it to him, he said ‘Well, of course,’” Karla said. “That decision is literally going to affect generations.”
Karla misses her son every day, but she finds comfort in knowing that his recipients are living full lives. “Karll becoming an organ donor was, at the time, the only light I saw in my darkness. I lost one of the greatest gifts that has ever been given to me, but other people gained that gift. Life didn’t end with Karll’s murder because it continued in his recipients,” Karla said. “My precious boy giving life to others filled my soul with joy.”
Shortly after Karll gave the gift of life, Karla organized a block party to educate her neighbors about the importance of organ, eye, and tissue donation. She is on a mission— especially in communities of color—to spread the word through volunteering for Life Connection of Ohio. “Everyone in the hood has a Donate Life wristband, and they all registered because of Karll,” Karla said.
Karla encourages everyone to register as organ, eye, and tissue donors. “The benefits and the blessings of organ donation…it’s mind-blowing. I can’t get over what a light organ donation is,” Karla said. “If someone doesn’t want to donate, I want them to take a seat and let me tell them about a young man that became a superhero for giving a selfless gift.”
Karla beams with pride for her son. “He made great things happen when he was here, and because of him, even greater things are happening and will continue to happen. Karll wasn’t meant to be here in the physical sense for forever, and this is his legacy,” Karla said. “I hope he’s in a bathtub full of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups up there.”
Karll’s family volunteers for Life Connection of Ohio, the non-profit organization that serves families and saves lives through organ donation. To learn more about organ donation or to say “yes” to saving lives, visit lifeconnection.org. Kara Steele is Director of Community Services for Life Connection of Ohio.
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