Donating eye tissue viewed as a tribute to loved one
Providing the gift of sight helps bring peace to donor’s family.
By Rae Price - August 19, 2024
Gary Zimmerman was an avid outdoorsman.
When 55-year-old Gary Zimmerman passed away while hiking near Aspen, CO, his wife, Susan, immediately said yes to let the eye tissue recovery process begin. Since he was a registered eye, organ and tissue donor she did not need to make a decision but was asked to cooperate in the next steps to make the eye tissue available to someone in need.
They were 4.5 miles into a hike on Conundrum Peak when Gary collapsed. He was airlifted off the mountain and Susan had to be taken down the mountain on an ATV. When she reached the base, someone was waiting and asked her to sign a form regarding his donation, she said, “Of course I signed it, and they were able to recover the tissue and get it to Denver.”
The eye tissue was recovered by Rocky Mountain Lions Eye Bank (RMLEB) and evaluated in its laboratory. The tissue was deemed suitable for transplantation, and within four days, both corneas were used to restore sight in recipients in Kansas.
In addition to eye tissue, Gary was also able to donate other tissues including skin, veins, and bone which were recovered by Donor Alliance, the organ procurement organization serving Colorado and most of Wyoming.
Realizing dream helps with healing
Gary and Susan had moved from St. Louis, MO, to Colorado in 2005 and bought a small 8-acre organic farm, something Gary, a corporate executive, had always wanted. Since his passing, Susan has kept the farm going, and with the help of dedicated workers, it provides limited quantities of produce she sells to local niche restaurants. She also has chickens and sells eggs to area residents.
Susan Zimmerman, wife of Gary, an eye tissue donor has kept his spirit alive in an organic farm that was his dream. Grapes from the vineyard are sold to a local bar where the juice is used to make specialty drinks.
Keeping the farm has aided the grief healing for Susan. “I call it finishing his life,” she said “There’s always more that could be done, but it doesn’t ‘need’ to be done. I look at it as if I’ve wrapped that package; the kids are done (grown), the house is done, the farm is done. It’s been very healing.”
Born and raised in Iowa, Gary held true to his Iowa Hawkeyes roots, and Susan said that’s a part of him that keeps showing up at unexpected times and places. On a particularly hard day for her recently, she said as she was driving, she saw three cars with Iowa license plates go by; her thought was, “There’s Gary.”
Another time, while she was with her kids at a thrift shop in California, her son called from across the store, “Hey Mom, look at this!” He was holding an Iowa Hawkeyes T-shirt. Her response was, “Dad’s here!” It’s those memories and smiles that help to keep his spirit alive in the family.
A Lasting, Loving Legacy
As for the tissues Gary was able to donate, Susan said, “I think donating his tissues, and knowing that he lives on in somebody else, and that he may have saved somebody else or allows them to see — I can’t think of a better tribute.” Thinking of the recipients, she said, “I’m happy that they are able to get something they thought they’d probably never get.”
As the 10-year anniversary of Gary’s passing nears, Susan remains comforted in the decision to donate his eye tissue, saying, “I think he would be honored that someone has his eyes.” She went on, “I would guess the person who got those corneas can now see, probably more than you and I can with good eyesight, because they know what it’s like not to see.”
She concluded saying, “Donating can make a huge difference in someone else’s life, and I think you feel good that a piece of that person is still out there getting to see the beautiful earth.”
Go Back When 55-year-old Gary Zimmerman passed away while hiking near Aspen, CO, his wife, Susan, immediately said yes to let the eye tissue recovery process begin. Since he was a registered eye, organ and tissue donor she did not need to make a decision but was asked to cooperate in the next steps to make the eye tissue available to someone in need.
They were 4.5 miles into a hike on Conundrum Peak when Gary collapsed. He was airlifted off the mountain and Susan had to be taken down the mountain on an ATV. When she reached the base, someone was waiting and asked her to sign a form regarding his donation, she said, “Of course I signed it, and they were able to recover the tissue and get it to Denver.”
The eye tissue was recovered by Rocky Mountain Lions Eye Bank (RMLEB) and evaluated in its laboratory. The tissue was deemed suitable for transplantation, and within four days, both corneas were used to restore sight in recipients in Kansas.
In addition to eye tissue, Gary was also able to donate other tissues including skin, veins, and bone which were recovered by Donor Alliance, the organ procurement organization serving Colorado and most of Wyoming.
Realizing dream helps with healing
Gary and Susan had moved from St. Louis, MO, to Colorado in 2005 and bought a small 8-acre organic farm, something Gary, a corporate executive, had always wanted. Since his passing, Susan has kept the farm going, and with the help of dedicated workers, it provides limited quantities of produce she sells to local niche restaurants. She also has chickens and sells eggs to area residents.
Susan Zimmerman, wife of Gary, an eye tissue donor has kept his spirit alive in an organic farm that was his dream. Grapes from the vineyard are sold to a local bar where the juice is used to make specialty drinks.
Keeping the farm has aided the grief healing for Susan. “I call it finishing his life,” she said “There’s always more that could be done, but it doesn’t ‘need’ to be done. I look at it as if I’ve wrapped that package; the kids are done (grown), the house is done, the farm is done. It’s been very healing.”
Born and raised in Iowa, Gary held true to his Iowa Hawkeyes roots, and Susan said that’s a part of him that keeps showing up at unexpected times and places. On a particularly hard day for her recently, she said as she was driving, she saw three cars with Iowa license plates go by; her thought was, “There’s Gary.”
Another time, while she was with her kids at a thrift shop in California, her son called from across the store, “Hey Mom, look at this!” He was holding an Iowa Hawkeyes T-shirt. Her response was, “Dad’s here!” It’s those memories and smiles that help to keep his spirit alive in the family.
A Lasting, Loving Legacy
As for the tissues Gary was able to donate, Susan said, “I think donating his tissues, and knowing that he lives on in somebody else, and that he may have saved somebody else or allows them to see — I can’t think of a better tribute.” Thinking of the recipients, she said, “I’m happy that they are able to get something they thought they’d probably never get.”
As the 10-year anniversary of Gary’s passing nears, Susan remains comforted in the decision to donate his eye tissue, saying, “I think he would be honored that someone has his eyes.” She went on, “I would guess the person who got those corneas can now see, probably more than you and I can with good eyesight, because they know what it’s like not to see.”
She concluded saying, “Donating can make a huge difference in someone else’s life, and I think you feel good that a piece of that person is still out there getting to see the beautiful earth.”