BRAINTREE, MASS. (WHDH) - Bernie & Phyl’s sons have more on their mind than furniture at their Braintree store. Today, it’s all about saving lives.
“Becoming a donor can give somebody that second chance at life,” said Larry Rubin.
Brothers Larry and Rob Rubin lead the furniture giant, but this day they want to lead all of New England to boost organ transplants.
For them, this mission is personal.
“I was so sick that if I didn’t get the organs right away we wouldn’t be having this interview. I was really on the way out,” said Rob Rubin.
Rob recently received a kidney and liver transplant from a deceased donor.
Larry — who was diagnosed with kidney disease at a young age — is waiting for a kidney from a living donor.
“I’m just hopeful that I’ll find somebody that will be healthy enough to donate,” Larry said.
New England Donor Services organized this event to raise awareness about the importance of organ and tissue donation, and to encourage people to check the box to become a donor when they renew their driver’s license.
“You’re more likely to need a transplant than to become an organ donor. So the idea of getting that heart on your license is really the idea of hope and the idea that you could save someone else’s life,” said Matthew Boger of New England Donor Services.
Susan Flint’s son, Lucas, gave the gift of life. The Emerson College junior was killed in a hit-and-run crash at 21-years-old. Through organ transplants, his heart, lungs and kidneys saved five people.
“Because I had a cousin who received my uncle’s kidney it was so natural, of course. If he can’t be the way he was then yes, that’s the right way to go,” said Susan Flint, the donor’s mother.
New England Donor Services has helped more than double the number of organ transplants in New England over the last six years.
With the Rubin brothers and the Bernie & Phyl’s team behind them, the agency is hoping to register even more people willing to give the gift of life.
“It will save somebody’s life. It can help save somebody’s life,” Larry Rubin said.
Nearly 1,700 Americans had their lives saved by an organ transplant last year, but many people are still waiting.
For more information about becoming an organ donor, you can visit these websites:
Mass.gov Learn more about organ and tissue donation
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