Organ donation could come full circle for two families

Maurice Brown, Jr.

By Karen Jordan

May 13, 2005

The gift of organ donations may come full circle for two families first brought together by the death of a 15-year-old boy.

The day Maurice Brown, Jr. turned 15 he was shot. His mother promised him on his deathbed that his legacy would live on. And it is. A Naperville woman received two of his organs, and now her husband is inspired to return the favor.

It was an emotional reunion between three fast friends. Penny Bady of Chicago's West Side met Bill and Alecia McClung of Naperville less than a year ago, but they have a deep connection.

"She is so appreciative, she is so happy and when we met, we had a bond right away," said Penny Bady, mother of slain teenager.

Alecia received a new kidney and pancreas, organs donated by Bady's son, Maurice Brown, Jr. The 15-year-old was shot to death on his 15th birthday back in December of 2003, in an attempted robbery, a murder that's still unsolved. Bady got the news about the shooting at her job, which is in the transplant unit at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

"I never in a million years thought that this would happen to me, and I would have to make the decision to give son's organs up," said Bady.

"I just really want to thank Penny and her family for donating his organs, just because it has saved other people's lives," said Alecia McClung, organ recipient.

After the transplant, Alecia reached out to Penny and learned more about the person who saved her life.

Maurice was a standout athlete at Marshall High School, and now a scholarship is named after him. It is one of 50 that were handed out Friday night to students from Marshall and Austin high schools. In the audience, Maurice's grandmother, Delphine Bady, who is in need of a new kidney. Bill McClung says when he heard this he wanted to help.

"Penny's mom has a slightly unusual blood type and so do I, and she needs a kidney, and I know enough about organ transplantation and things like that that I don't need both kidneys, so if I can do it that'd be great," said Bill McClung, potential organ donor.

African-Americans and Hispanics are more likely to need organ transplants because of a higher rate of health problems but are less likely to donate organs. The Secretary of State's office says one organ donor can help 25 recipients. So, in this case Alecia McClung is not the only one who benefited from Maurice's gift of life.

Copyright © 2005 ABC Inc., WLS Television Inc.

This article posted June 26, 2005.