[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 64 (Friday, May 17, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E846-E847]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             MINNESOTA REP. DARLENE LUTHER'S LASTING LEGACY

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                            HON. JIM RAMSTAD

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 16, 2002

  Mr. RAMSTAD. Mr. Speaker, we have all learned in the last eight 
months how fragile life can be, and how nobility and grace can rise 
from tragedy and sadness.
  We have all mourned recently with our colleague Bill Luther the loss 
of his beloved wife, Darlene, who was a distinguished member of the 
Minnesota House of Representatives, as well as a loving wife and mother 
of Alex and Alicia Luther.
  Mr. Speaker, I was profoundly moved by a recent story from the Fergus 
Falls Journal which reflects the great love Darlene and Bill shared for 
each other, as well as others.
  The story, by Mary Mahoney, also speaks volumes about the enduring 
power of human kindness.
  Because I would like to share this beautiful story of love, sacrifice 
and the enduring bond of friendship, I respectfully submit for the 
record the enclosed article from the Fergus

[[Page E847]]

Falls Journal of February 7, 2002, entitled ``Family's gift of life 
leaves enduring bond,'' by Mary Mahoney.

                [From Fergus Falls Journal Feb. 7, 2002]

               Family's Gift of Life Leaves Enduring Bond

                           (By Mary Mahoney)

       More than 25 years before his unexpected death, Gary Bradow 
     told his wife Norma that he wanted his organs donated. ``I 
     told him that if he went first, I didn't know if I could do 
     it,'' Norma said from her Fergus Falls home. ``Gary told me I 
     could, that I would just know it was right.''
       But nothing could have prepared Norma for the awful day 
     that Gary died. A malformed artery in his brain caused a 
     fatal stroke in March 1998 at the age of 57. Norma was faced 
     with the one decision she didn't want to make. ``
       ``People think of `harvesting' organs as an awful thing,'' 
     she said. ``But I realized we were farmers; harvesting is a 
     wonderful thing for farmers. And in the case of donating 
     Gary's organs, `harvesting' was wonderful too.''
       A man in Wisconsin received a kidney. A 63-year-old widow 
     got another kidney. Two others received his eyes.
       And State Rep. Darlene Luther was the recipient of Gary's 
     liver, literally occurring hours before she would have died.
       A simple thank-you letter written to Norma six months after 
     the transplant established a bond that couldn't be broken--
     even after Darlene's death on Jan. 30.
       ``I don't think of myself as one but as two persons,'' she 
     wrote, signing only her first name.
       With those words, Norma knew she had to connect with this 
     woman who had reached out to her.
       ``Her letter touched my heart in a way I just can't 
     describe and I immediately called LifeSource and said I had 
     to meet her,'' Norma said. ``It took awhile, but two weeks 
     before Christmas 1998, both of them (Darlene and her husband 
     U.S. Representative Bill Luther) were here.''
       In the four years since Darlene's transplant, the Bradow 
     family became dear and special friends with the Luthers, 
     visiting often and corresponding frequently. Darlene even 
     flew out to Seattle one day to have lunch with Norma and her 
     daughter Pam, who lives in Seattle, and flew back the same 
     afternoon.
       ``The bond we had was completely beyond words,'' Norma 
     said. ``She was such a kind and generous lady.''
       Another twist of fate connected the families as well. Bill, 
     who grew up in a dairy farm near Fergus Falls and has 
     relatives in the area, had briefly known Gary before his 
     death.
       ``I knew of them and had spoken with Gary before all of 
     this happened,'' Bill said. ``And the odds that my wife would 
     receive a liver transplant from a man from my hometown--it's 
     just amazing the way life can bond people together.''
       To Darlene, it was a sign that more needed to be done to 
     increase awareness of organ donation. She felt she was the 
     perfect person to educate people about the benefits of organ 
     donation as a state representative, and helped enact 
     legislation providing funding for a mobile education unit for 
     LifeSource, the organ donation procurement organization that 
     helped secure her liver.
       ``She (Darlene) did such a great amount of work, getting 
     families to talk about organ donation,'' said LifeSource 
     Public Relations manager Susan Mau Larson. ``She was a living 
     statement of the wondrous good provided by organ donation.''
       The mobile unit is similar to a bookmobile, with displays 
     and kiosks about organ donation. In late December, LifeSource 
     presented a plaque that will hang in the mobile unit, 
     thanking Darlene for all the work she's done for organ 
     procurement.
       Last week, a bill passed through the House of 
     Representatives--named in honor of Darlene--making a person's 
     organ donation wishes a binding contract, meaning a family 
     member cannot override the decision. The Senate will begin 
     its process on the bill today, Mau Larson said.
       But despite the positive work Darlene provided, tragedy 
     struck the Luthers and the Bradows--once again.
       ``Darlene called me in late October to let me know she had 
     stomach cancer,'' Norma said. ``The anti-rejection drugs 
     masked the cancer and by the time they found out, it was 
     inoperable.''
       It was then that the friendship shifted and Norma began 
     helping Darlene the way she had been helped after her 
     husband's death.
       ``I wrote her weekly notes, little inspirational things to 
     encourage her,'' she said. ``Her inner peace was phenomenal; 
     she was such an inspiration to me and I was trying to help 
     her.''
       When Bill called Norma the morning after Darlene died, she 
     said the news was heart-wrenching enough. But what came next 
     practically took her breath away.
       ``Darlene had requested she be buried in Fergus Falls, 
     where she could be near us,'' Norma said. ``I burst into 
     tears when Bill said that.''
       For Bill and his children Alex and Alicia, it was a natural 
     decision.
       ``We were so appreciative of those four years Darlene 
     received because of the transplant,'' Bill said. ``The 
     Bradows are part of our family.''
       He insisted that Norma ride in the lead car during the 
     burial procession and that Gary's family, including his 
     mother, Emma and daughters Tara and Debra, take part in the 
     service held Wednesday afternoon at Oak Grove Cemetery.
       ``That's what they mean to us,'' Bill said. ``And it's what 
     Darlene would have wanted.''

     

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