By FireRescue1 Staff
OROVILLE, Calif. — A firefighter who died unexpectedly last year lives on after his heart was donated.
FOX19 reported that San Francisco firefighter Perry Choy died last August after suffering a stroke, and his partner, Aletha Gomez, listened to his heart beat for the first time inside the chest of Jim Donovan.
“It was loud, it was strong, as strong as his love for us, actually,” Gomez said.
Donovan was diagnosed with congestive heart failure after contracting a lung infection from a fungus and waited almost two years for an exact heart transplant match.
“I actually gave up, and I gave up for a long time. And I didn’t think anything would happen,” he said.
Doctors finally found a match in Choy, who Gomez said wanted to donate his organs after his death.
“He told me, ‘You know when I pass away, when I die, what am I gonna do with it? Might as well donate it and save more lives,’” Gomez said. “This is his will. This is what he wants. I feel thankful and grateful that he lives on.”
Gomez told KCRA that she now feels a bond with Donovan.
“I feel so connected with him. Actually, hearing his heart, it seems like he’s family to me now. We’re going to be a family.”