In September of 2017, Ben Johnson suddenly passed away from a brain aneurysm.
He collapsed while lifting weights at Fleming Island High School.
The teen was an organ donor, and his death became a second chance at life for a man hundreds of miles away.
RELATED: Family comforted by donation of Fleming Island football player's organs
Johnson, who was a football and baseball player, was loved by his classmates and teammates.
Days after his death, a football game was played in his honor.
While his parents were in the stands, beginning their grieving process, hundreds of miles away in Bonifay, Florida, Donald Etheridge and his wife were at their son's football game.
They received a call that would change their lives. “I said, 'I am at my son’s football game.'" Etheridge said. "He (the doctor) says, 'Well, how would you like to come to Mayo tonight, because I have you a kidney and a liver?'”
The two drove to Jacksonville, and the transplant was a success.
Etheridge began his recovery at Gabriel House of Care.
The two saw Johnson’s story in the news, and both felt Johnson might be the donor.
Donors and their families cannot identify themselves for a year. They can elect to write letters, and if both parties agree, they can meet after a year.
Etheridge started writing, and on what Ben’s mother, Tricia Johnson, said was one of her lowest days, the letter arrived.
She carried the photo of Etheridge and his family and the letter in her purse for months.
On Johnson’s birthday, his mom wrote a post on his remembering page, a page Etheridge's wife, Lucy, began following after learning of Johnson’s story.
Etheridge's wife decided to message Johnson’s mother. Instantly, Tricia Johnson recognized her as the woman in the photo in her purse.
The two began talking and eventually meeting. “We found out that Donald was a football coach and a baseball coach. Those were Ben’s sports,” Johnson's mom said. “He also had a sophomore son who was a football player and played on the offensive line like Ben does, so we just felt these organs were meant to be for Donald.”
The two families say they will forever be connected through Johnson.
For information on Organ Donation, visit donate life Florida.
For upcoming events in honor of Ben Johnson click here.
Cox Media Group
