He Changed My Life And I Never Met Him

There’s not a lot on my desk here at KOIN.  I have a couple family pictures, an autographed picture of one of my favorite people-Diane Sawyer-and there’s one other picture.  Drew Swank. 

He’s a boy I never met.  I never heard his name until he was on life support at a Spokane hospital.  Nevertheless-his story profoundly touched me.   Drew and the entire Swank family left a huge heart-print on me. 

I guess I should back up and tell you his story.  He was a happy, healthy teenage boy.  A star on a Spokane high school football team.  Adorable, athletic, loving and above all else -- giving.  

During a football game in September 2009 Drew took a hit.  He went to the sidelines complaining of a headache, collapsed in his father’s arms and never regained consciousness.  Shortly after his death, media from all Spokane outlets asked the Swanks if they wanted to commemorate Drew’s life through stories and pictures on the news.  I believe it was a week later-they agreed to talk about Drew.  I was the reporter who showed up on the dirt driveway that leads to the Swank’s house.  I recall sitting there in the station SUV with a photographer who lost his own brother way too young-talking about the decision to talk after the death of a loved one.  It’s something I don’t know I would have the desire or strength to do.  Mid-coversation, a Suburban rolled down the winding driveway and Drew’s siblings poured out.  Their hearts were heavy.  I could feel their agony.  One by one each of his siblings shared stories about Drew.  They talked about how tender hearted Drew was, how it was never a mystery how much he loved each of them.   They spoke about how much Drew had given all of them in his 17 years on earth.  At the end-his oldest sister told me Drew didn’t stop giving when he died-in fact, she told me he gave the ultimate life saving gift to others-his organs.  

In the weeks and months after talking with Drew's family I thought about them and him all the time.  I asked the questions so many were asking-why was this boy taken so young?  Why does this family have to suffer the excruciating pain of losing a boy with so much love and life to live?  And so-I followed up.  In the spring of 2010, I called Drew's brother in law and asked if any of Drew's organ recipients had come forward.  They had.  The Swanks knew of two people who received precious pieces of Drew.  It was too soon, everything too raw for the Swanks to meet these people yet-but they gave me permission to contact them.  I did and both recipients agreed to share their stories.  

The first is Austin Fletcher.  A charming small town boy from a rural area near Port Angeles, Washington.  Austin's health had been going downhill for years.  He was suffering from a potentially fatal liver disease.  I remember getting goose bumps talking to his mother Teres for the first time on the phone.  She told me the moment she got the got the call a liver was available for Austin, she was looking at a news article about Drew Swank online.  She says she was drawn to Drew's picture-couldn't take her eyes off of him.  She was devastated for this family across the state.  She told me she knew at that moment- Drew was the one who was ultimately about to save her little boy.  During the interview, she told me she believes Drew came to her that night and made himself known.   She believes Drew and Austin knew each other in heaven-and I'll never forget her teary words  "it was as if Drew was telling Austin, I've got your back."  Austin was never able to play sports until he got Drew's liver. Now, he's healthy and proudly wears #15, Drew's number, on the baseball field. 

A couple hours south, near Chehalis, Drew's heart is still beating in the chest of Lee Blumenthal.  Lee has three sons, one who's only a few months older than Drew.  A mechanical heart was keeping him alive when he got the call-that a heart was available.  His sister told me he was weeks if not days from death at the time.  Lee says he thinks about the boy that brought him back to life several times per day-I do too.  

And so now, you might be wondering why I'm writing this blog two years late.  The two year anniversary of Drew's death is fast approaching-it's also the two year anniversary of life for the people he saved.  As Drew's mom, Patti, told me "the worst day of our life was the best day of their lives."  She said "I'm so happy God could use our son to help others."   I can't help but think about Drew when I drive past football fields this time of year-busy with high school teams.  I can't help but ache for the Swank family and mourn for this boy I never knew.  At the same time, I think about how much the Swanks taught me about life and family and God.  You've never met a family with stronger faith.  I admire that so much.  I hope Drew's legacy lives on in everyone who hears his story.  Never let it be a mystery how much you love others.  I also hope everyone who hears his story of giving seriously considers donating their organs.  You might be someone's life saver, a stranger's greatest gift.  

Here are several stories I did about Drew:

  

Above is the very first story I did with the Swanks, shortly after Drew's death.  

"Drew's Gift"-The story about Drew and the people who's lives he saved.

A story about some of the uncanny coincidences behind Drew's gift.

The Swanks meet Austin Fletcher for the first time to celebrate what would have been Drew's 18th birthday.