Heart transplant brings families together after NC 15-year-old's death from nut allergy
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WTVD) -- The Poore and Minsk families, once unlikely to cross paths, now communicate daily and refer to each other as "extended family" after transforming tragedy into a shared purpose.
15-year-old Celina Minsk was born with a severe nut allergy.
"She was a very strong person, she was a leader, all of her friends loved her," Celina's father, John Minsk, remembered.
Her mother, Mayda, added that the teen loved to dance, and loved music and gymnastics too. She was very convinced in her faith and loved spending time with friends and family.
Celina's family was extremely careful with what she ate, but back in 2023, she had a snack from a potluck that was supposed to be nut free.
"Immediately, like after one bite, she started to have a little reaction," Celina's mother, Mayda Minsk, told ABC11.
It's nothing you prepare yourself for as a parentMayda Minsk
Mayda tried to treat the allergic reaction at home but realized she needed more help. She called an ambulance, which rushed Celina to a hospital.
"I thought she was going to be fine," she said.
The ER doctor broke the horrific news -- the 15-year-old had gone too long without oxygen and was brain dead.
Still in shock, John and Mayda had a difficult conversation about organ donation, with their daughter just so full of life hours before.
"It's nothing you prepare yourself for as a parent, I mean, maybe you should, but you don't prepare yourself for that at all," Mayda said.
They eventually decided to move forward with organ donation and learned their daughter would be able to save the lives of 5 different people. One of them was a teen not much younger than Celina.
13-year-old Haley Poore lived in Virginia at the time. She was born with a serious heart condition and had several surgeries as a baby.
Doctors considered giving her a heart transplant as a toddler, but Haley's parents, Kristie and Curtis Poore, decided to wait. They knew the operation would be risky, and without getting a perfect match from a donor, they were terrified that they might lose their daughter instead of saving her life.
Haley lived as normal a life as possible for over a decade. She would run out of breath easily, but Kristie said her daughter would never complain about it and always had a great attitude.
At 13, her condition started to worsen. Doctors made it clear that she didn't have much longer to wait and desperately needed a transplant.
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The family was sitting in a hospital bed in Charlottesville when a doctor came in and told them a heart was available.
"Of course you get all emotional, because someone else has to pass away for mine to live, so she said, 'Kristie this is the most perfect heart we could ever ask for'," Kristie said. "I said, 'Are you sure? Because there's no guarantee mine's going to come out of the operating table, there's no guarantee this heart is going to work."
But it did work. Slowly, Haley recovered.
"I was pretty scared, but I knew I had to do it to live," Haley told ABC11.
Haley's mom realized she needed to write a letter to the family that saved her daughter's life.
"I just told them the story about Haley to let them know what it did for us, for her, and we could never repay them back," Kristie said.
The families decided to meet, and John and Mayda got to hear their daughter's heartbeat again -- this time giving life to Haley.
The families grew close. The two talk almost every single day now.
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Celina's parents said their relationship with Haley and her family has helped them heal. It's given them new purpose as they learn how to live without Celina.
"If you focus on the blessings and the positives and try to give love," Mayda said, " then that's what you're going to get back... and that's exactly what Celina would want."
On average, 17 people in America die every day waiting for a transplant. In North Carolina, there are roughly 3,000 people waiting for a transplant.
If you want to learn more about organ donation, click here.
