My 20-year-old grandson, Elijah Riley Gordy-Stith, was shot to death one year ago this week. Police said he was trying to rob someone’s home.
Elijah made a bad decision and paid a terrible price. But what you may not know is that the way Elijah died did not cause the people who loved him to love him any less. Or hurt any less.
What some of you also may not know is that God often salvages good things from life’s worst events.
People who read about his death in the newspaper saw only one page of Elijah’s life, but there was much more. He had survived a traumatic childhood before my son, Bo, and his wife, Vicki, asked him to become part of their family.
“Elijah’s beautiful green eyes stole our hearts, as he gave his heart to us,” they said in his obituary. “A patient teacher, Elijah always made time for others, especially children. His fun-loving and goofy side cheered us up whenever we were down. Elijah always found a way to smile in adversity.”
The obituary said he died as he lived, giving life and love to others: Elijah was an organ donor. And, months after Elijah’s death, Bo and Vicki received this letter:
“I am the 35-year-old woman who received the precious heart from your loved one. I know that there are no words that can truly express my feelings for your family. It takes a special kind of person to make such a sacrifice in their time of grief and need.”
“Your loved one and your family are in my thoughts and prayers every day. I can never express the gratitude I have for this second chance at life. I can promise you that I will try to live up to the example set by your love one and touch and help as many people as possible in a positive way.”
“I thought you might like to know that things are going well with my new heart. Before my gift, I had a LVAD, which is a heart pump, for 364 days. My heart EF [heart failure measurement] was at 8% when I got the pump. I had cancer as a teenager and chemo caused a lot of damage. At 28, I had my daughter. She is 6 now. Thanks to your gift, I will be able to see her grow up, which before didn’t look promising.”
“Saying thank you just doesn’t seem like enough when a stranger saves your life. Your family have changed my complete outlook on life and everything it stands for. I sincerely hope that life treats your family to nothing but happiness and prosperity.”
Coming Monday: Wasting Taxpayers’ Money