WEDDING DAY CALL THAT GAVE RICHARD SIX LIFELINES Dad walks daughter down the aisle... and next day has organ transplants
NOTHING could keep the smile from Richard Gibson’s face as he walked his youngest daughter down the aisle – not even the agony he felt with every step.
The doting dad signed himself out of hospital to give Jenny away after spending more than a year waiting for SIX new organs.
And their seemingly perfect day was about to get even better.
Less than an hour after the ceremony, doctors called Richard with news a donor had been found.
After a tearful goodbye to his family, he flew to Cambridge to be treated the next morning by the only team in the UK willing to attempt such an enormous transplant.
Replacing his kidney, liver, bowel, stomach, spleen and pancreas took 21 hours as surgeons worked in shifts so they could operate safely.
Perfect
Jenny, 31, said: “I couldn’t imagine getting married without him giving me away – that was all that mattered to me. But as we were getting closer to my wedding, I could see he was getting sicker.
“I didn’t think he was going to make it. I even planned to stop the wedding car at the hospital so he could see me in my dress. Having him there, then finding a donor, was the perfect wedding present.”
Richard, 57, said: “I didn’t know how long I had left, so I was determined to walk Jenny down the aisle. As long as I did that, I wasn’t worried about the rest of the day. Then to get that call was very emotional.
“It was hard to believe it was actually happening.”
Richard fell ill at eldest daughter Lisa’s wedding in Cyprus in July 2016. He was barely well enough to travel home – and was admitted to hospital with complications from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Surgeons in London planned a liver and kidney transplant, but by the time Richard was at the top of the waiting list the following year, he was in multi-organ failure.
Richard, from Belfast, said: “They said there was nothing they could do, the operation was too complex. It was devastating, suddenly all our hope was gone.”
But a team from Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge offered to perform the surgery instead.
“That came as a real shock. We had no idea the operation was even possible,” said Richard.
However, he was deteriorating so rapidly that there was no guarantee a donor would be found in time. And his family feared he might not survive until Jenny’s wedding – or would be too ill to attend.
There was a brief glimmer of hope when Richard was summoned to Cambridge, but the transplant was aborted
Having him there, then finding a donor was the
perfect gift
at the last moment because the organs were not a good enough match. So the family hastily arranged a second, smaller wedding for immediate family. It was set for early December, 2017 – to be followed by a fullblown affair on New Year’s Eve.
Richard and Jenny are telling their story now as a thank-you to doctors and to support organ donation.
Jenny explained how the first ceremony was rushed through, saying: “I was at work and my
sister Lisa called and told me she had found a venue. I put the phone down and said, ‘Oh my goodness, I’m getting married on Saturday’.
“Lisa and my mum sorted everything. They found a silver dress for me, booked a limousine, arranged the flowers. It was incredible.”
Richard was at the ceremony – but fell seriously ill on December 30, a day before Jenny’s wedding blessing and the main reception.
His family stayed with him until 3.30am, when he persuaded them to go home and rest before the wedding. Later that morning, Richard signed himself out, had a quick cuppa at home and put on his suit.
Jenny said: “Every time the wedding car went over a bump you could
see him tense up. He never stopped smiling, but you could see he was in so much pain. He looked grey and fragile. He could hardly talk, but he was there.”
After the blessing, Richard posed for photos with Jenny and groom Adam before going to his hotel room to rest. He checked his phone and saw a missed call from the hospital.
Richard said: “It was a mix of panic and excitement. All of a sudden, I forgot about all the pain.”
Bridesmaid Lisa was just about to give the father of the bride’s speech on behalf of her dad when he burst in to tell them the news. Lisa, 34, said: “He came running through the room, even though he could barely walk a few minutes earlier. When he called the hospital and gave us the thumbs up, we all burst out crying.”
Jenny said: “Daddy had to leave straight away, so we couldn’t have our dance together. His favourite song was The Gambler, by Kenny Rogers, so the DJ got everyone on to the dance floor in his honour.”
Richard travelled to England with his wife Joan, 57, and had a series of tests before the multiple transplant on New Year’s Day. He was on the operating table until 5am the next morning – Joan’s birthday and the day Jenny was due to go on honeymoon in Dubai.
Jenny said: “We were told Daddy would be in intensive care and wouldn’t be able to talk straight away, but as soon as he woke up, he wished Mummy a happy birthday.”
Richard was in hospital until latemarch. Back home, he watched the wedding DVD – having been unable to recall all of it because of the pain.
At Christmas 2018, Richard’s family bought him an organ donation-themed bench and, a week later, marked the anniversary of his transplant with a cake modelled on the kids’ game Operation. Three years on, Richard looks so much healthier – and just a few months ago saw off a bout of Covid.
And, thanks to his donor, the former bus driver has been able to meet and play with his two grandsons Archie, now two, and Rickson, 10 months.
Richard said: “I’ll always be incredibly grateful to my donor. Having been told that a transplant wasn’t an option for me, they have given me a second chance. My life has changed so much.
“Holding Archie for the first time was marvellous because I didn’t know if that would ever happen. That’s all thanks to my donor.”
feedback@people.co.uk For more information on transplants go to facebook.com/ sharingyourwishes and organdonation.nhs.uk