6 People To Receive Organs From Jersey City Teen Cut Down By Tragedy
JERSEY CITY, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- The life of a teenage boy was cut short by a stray bullet on a Jersey City street, but now, he has given the gift of life to six strangers.
As CBS2's Matt Kozar reported, Ronald Witherspoon Jr., 16, dreamed of being an engineer. But that dream, and his life, ended last week on the streets of Jersey City.
Witherspoon's family said he died from a stray bullet to the head. He was standing just 50 feet from his front door.
"It wasn't even meant for him," said the victim's mother, Dawn Witherspoon. "It was just a drive-by shooting."
Dawn Witherspoon and her husband, Ronald Sr., found solace in the smiling photos of their teenage son – the eighth of nine children. But there was something else giving them comfort – a certificate from the New Jersey Sharing Network.
"His dreams were cut short, but through his generosity, other people may be able to live their dreams," said Ronald Witherspoon Sr.
The Witherspoons agreed to donate seven of their son's organs to six people.
A 13-year-old girl received a kidney, a 35-year-old woman received intestines, a 39-year-old woman received two lungs, and three men, all 60 years old, received the other kidney and the heart and liver.
The New Jersey Sharing Network said it also collected bone and skin tissues that will be used to help 50 people.
"It makes me feel good, especially when they said the 13-year-old girl," Dawn Witherspoon said.
As Dawn Witherspoon prepared for her son's funeral coming up Tuesday at the Mount Olive Baptist Church in Jersey City, she was curious to know who received Ronald's organs.
"I would like to meet them one day if possible, to say I'm glad that you made it because of my son," she said.
Nationwide, 21 people die every day waiting for an organ.
As of Thursday night, no arrests had been made in the shooting death of Ronald Witherspoon Jr.
