INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis family is celebrating the anniversary of a life-saving procedure: a heart transplant, a decade ago, from one child to another.
That gift of life came from Fuentez Guerra.
Guerra and five members of his family died in 2014 in one of the city's most tragic house fires.
Thanks to Guerra, 14-year-old Liam Sprague and his family had a reason to celebrate Sunday.
Liam Sprague can't help but smile when he sees Guerra's face. They've never officially met, but Sprague carries a piece of him wherever he goes.
"Everybody that knows Liam knows he had a heart transplant, and he knows. He didn't have a stroke until the middle of it," said Liam's mother, Carolynn. "He went into the hospital with a sick heart. He knew he was going to need a heart to get better. This is kind of closing that loop. He did get a heart that made him better and it was Fuentez's heart."
A decade later, that heart is still beating strong.
"He's amazing. His heart is amazing. He's happy and healthy. He's thriving. He loves to laugh," Carolynn said.
That's something everyone in this room can agree on. They call themselves Liam's Army, and on the 10th anniversary of his life-saving heart transplant, 150 of Liam's closest family and friends gathered to celebrate him and the boy who gave him a second chance.
"If it wasn't for Fuentez we wouldn't have Liam. If it wasn't for the Guerras we wouldn't have Liam," Carolynn said.
The transplant somehow unifies both families.
"They say on their hardest days they can go back and look at Liam's pictures and videos and it reminds them that even with tragedy there's greatness and there are good things. Liam is that good thing that came out of it," Carolynn said.
Peggy Cartcare was a part of Liam's Army from the very beginning.
She took care of Liam at the hospital in the emergency department.
Now she's an aftercare support coordinator with the Indiana Donor Network.
"It's hard work to do what we do," Cartcare said. "To see these families have their loved one longer, and to be a part of that, and to have Liam 10 years with his family because of this gift is an amazing thing to be a part of, and that's why it's so important for people to register."
"We wouldn't have this. I would only be a mom of one if it weren't for organ donation," Carolynn said
According to the federal organ donor registry, every organ donor can save eight lives.
For more information about becoming an organ donor, visit this link.