07/30/2026
35 years ago yesterday, a young lady age 25 named Gina Bailey Johnston died in a car accident in Colorado. They expected her to live and that her spine and broken neck would heal but a blood clot traveled to her brain and that is what took her life. I only found out these details a year ago in March 2025.
I was the transplant recipient of Gina's pancreas and one of her kidneys . A grueling case of childhood diabetes and kidney failure was cured when my body received her donated organs. She saved my life in losing hers - and likely many other lives as well.
Dr. Robert Corry, surgeon, University of Iowa Hospital, July 27, 1991. performed this miracle. With hubby Paul at my side.
I tried for 34 years to find her identity. All I had was her name, age, how/where she died.
I imagined her from the moment I heard her name and thought of her gift of life every day.
Last March through a request I made on social media, a woman found Gina within 10 minutes of my post. I got her full name, obit and even a photo of her gravestone. We called the funeral home she was interred by in 1991, hoping they'd remember her. The director answered the phone (he said he never does this) and Gina happened to be one of his lifelong friends since kindergarten. Gina also married his best friend.
I was connected to the rest of her family and after several emotional emails was told I was part of their family now. I got more picture of Gina, and was told stories of what kind of beautiful person she was full of love and light born to elder parents, growing up with her much older sister's son, Matt, who was just a few years younger than Gina. He adored her and we wrote back and forth.
When I saw Gina's picture she looked just like i had imagined all these years and in fact we looked a little alike. We had a 6/6 antigen match - and Dr Corry said it was so close we could have been sisters.
Her father's name was Walter Johnston, and my grandfathers name was Walter Johnson.
Gina lives not only in my heart but as part of this collection of organs that gives me the gift of life and allows me to share my fitness journey to inspire others - especially women in my age group. If I can, you can.
Gina is my guardian angel and I know I will see her one day in the Great Beyond.
All I can say is Thank you God!
