Mother and daughter, both transplant recipients, able to celebrate Mother's Day

Mother’s Day is especially joyous for Patti Miletta and her daughter, Sarah Miletta. The Jefferson Twp. mother and daughter are able to celebrate because each received a heart transplant to treat a genetic condition that defined their lives.

The Milettas also know that other mothers suffer and are on a mission to thank people who donate their loved ones’ organs, corneas and tissue. They encourage others to sign up to donate. There are 531 people on wait lists in Northeast Pennsylvania, according to the Gift of Life Donor Program, which facilitates transplants.

Patti, 64, reached out to the anonymous mother of her teenage donor as soon as regulations allowed. Sarah, 37, plans to do the same.

Seventeen years after her transplant, Patti’s voice cracks while talking about it. She had been treated for heart problems for several years and had seen relatives die young.

“I’ll never forget the day my doctor turned and took my hand and said it’s time to go on the list,” for a transplant, Patti said.

Patti waited only a few months. The average for hearts is about a year.

Statistics on deaths while waiting for a heart were unavailable. But, overall, about 17 Americans a day die waiting for an organ.

“Sarah was a teenager at the time,” Patti said. “I wasn’t personally afraid to die, but you think about the life you have in front of you. And then, when you are seriously ill and you are on the list, you start to think about another family that is going to lose their loved one, so it is really an emotional roller coaster.”

By that point, Patti had stopped working and Sarah had already stepped into some household roles. Sarah said she was glad to help. Between helping at home and maintaining her grades, she didn’t have time to just sit with her thoughts.

Patti’s transplant was in 2006 at the Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. Patti knew she wanted to thank the donor’s family. She still feels a pang when she thinks of the donor’s youth. The identity of donors and recipients is confidential, but they can reach out to each other. She wrote to the donor’s mother and received an anonymous reply about two years later.

The donor’s mother wrote: “My son was a vivacious young man, a teenager. He was the type of person who never met a stranger. His smile brightened the world around him. He was full of life and looked forward to each day with wonder and amazement. I find solace and peace in knowing that even in death, my youngest son was able to give life to someone else through organ and tissue donation.”

“That’s a big legacy to live up to,” Patti said. “I try to make him and his family proud every day.”

Patti has written again on milestone anniversaries. Several years ago she wrote: “It is the sad anniversary of the loss of your son; and the generous decision you made to allow him to be an organ and tissue donor, which makes it my 10th anniversary of carrying your son’s heart in my chest. I want to let you know how well his heart is doing. Your son and I have been able to do so much together — run half marathons, many 5ks, and volunteer for various kids’ programs and the Gift of Life Donor Program. I hope this honors him. I like to picture that these activities would make him happy — being outside, helping others and running. Our story has also touched many others, some who have also gone on to save lives through organ and tissue donation. My family and I thank you and pray for you always. You will forever be a part of our family.”

Patti returned to work about a year after the surgery. She works in the price checking department of a retail corporation. She volunteers and shops with her daughter, who lives in an apartment in her parents’ home.

And Patti was there to care for her daughter when Sarah’s heart issues began several years ago. Sarah’s fatigue, nausea and muscle aches increased. Like her mom, she developed atrial fibrillation, a dangerous irregular heartbeat that can be painful and frightening. She had to leave her job as a veterinary technician.

“I just felt so helpless,” Patti said.

Sarah benefited from her mother’s experience.

“I was pretty relieved that somebody went before me,” Sarah said. “And I knew I could ask my mom any questions about it. She had firsthand experience, so I was more comfortable than the average person, for sure.”

She was on the waiting list for less than three months before her 2023 transplant. Like her mother’s, it was at Hershey, and arranged by the Gift of Life Donor Program, the organ procurement organization for eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and the state of Delaware.

Feeling returned to her hands. Sarah’s feet weren’t always cold anymore.

“To be able to walk at a normal pace and not feel out of breath, oh, it feels so good,” Sarah said. “It feels so good to walk now. I didn’t even want to go shopping in the mall, because I was so sick and so slow. It was not an enjoyment.”

The pair’s Mother’s Day plans are to go for a walk around a lake near their home.

Sarah just celebrated her “re-birthday” by passing the transplant recovery milestone of one year. She’s hoping for a new career in one of the helping professions.

That’s why the Milettas volunteer with the Gift of Life Donor Program, speaking at events across the region.

“They need to know how important their family member is,” Sarah said. “That they didn’t die in vain.”