GALVESTON — Vernon Dean Crawford was a former football player, strong and well able to work long hours in the oil field when he went to the doctor with what he thought was a chest cold.
The X-ray instead showed an enlarged heart. Doctors told the 6-foot-1 former athlete, a graduate of Central High School in Galveston, that he was in for the fight of his life.
He continued working, at one point serving as a deckhand on the Galveston ferry. Four years after the initial diagnosis, Crawford’s heart gave out.
Today, he celebrates the 4-month anniversary after a transplant gave him a new life.
“I just try to take it day by day and thank God that he gave me a second chance in life,” Crawford said. “I’ve got to make the best of it.”
Crawford, 59, received the heart of a 49-year-old man from West Texas on July 8. He hopes some day soon to write the family.
“I would like to say that I’m sorry you lost your father,” Crawford said. “And that I’m glad he was a donor.”
Crawford’s donor had registered before his death.
“That took the burden of making the decision off of the donor’s family,” Pam Silvestri, spokeswoman for Southwest Transplant Alliance, said.
The alliance is one of the organ donation agencies across the country that provides organs to transplant hospitals.
“It’s an important thing for readers to know that if they truly want to be donors, the only way to be sure their wishes will be honored is to register,” she said.
“Otherwise, the decision is left to family members who are already facing a difficult situation and are often distraught.”
Texas has a new state donor registry, allowing those interested to register either at their local Department of Public Safety Office or online at donatelifetexas.org.
“It’s probably the greatest gift,” Dr. Karen Kislingbury, a physician assistant and post heart transplant coordinator at the University of Texas Medical Branch, said.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity to give life to those who might not have a chance.”
Kislingbury is part of the team working with Crawford after his transplant.
“He’s so cool,” she said. “He did everything we asked of him and never complained.”
Heart transplant patients face many challenges. Crawford had a LVAD — Left Ventricular Assist Device — implanted for six months while awaiting a heart transplant.
After the transplant, he has more than 30 pills to take to fight rejection and other complications.
He also has a new life. Long accustomed to fending for himself, Crawford has seen his family gather around him to help. He talks to his children and sister often by phone.
His strength is coming back. Crawford takes walks daily, completes his girlfriend’s list of honey-dos and enjoys fishing.
“I feel like a new man,” he said.
He has also registered to be a donor himself. “I would encourage anybody to do that,” he said.
+++
At A Glance
• The Glenda Dawson Donate Life-Texas Registry is the official state organ tissue and eye donor registry. The program is funded by a $1 voluntary contribution Texans can make when applying for or renewing their driver’s license or identification card, or when registering their vehicle.
• Register to be a donor online at donatelifetexas.org or at your Department of Public Safety office when you apply for or renew your driver’s license or identification card. Tell your family.
• National Donor Sabbath, Friday through Nov. 15, is part of a donation drive launched by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 1997. During the sabbath weekend, faith communities can participate in services and programs to increase awareness of donation and transplantation. Go to organdonor.gov/get_involved/donorsabbath.htm for information.
