An uncommon bond

Seeing each other in person for the first time Monday in Coeur d’Alene, Cheryl Burroughs-Horne, right, whose daughter Alicia died in 2003, greets Denise Kitchen, an organ recipient who received Alicia’s lungs.

When she opened the envelope, Denise Kitchen saw the enclosed photo before reading the letter she had waited so long to receive. A pretty teenage girl with freckles across her nose smiled up at her.

It was a portrait of Alicia Burroughs-Horne, the girl whose untimely death in 2003 saved Kitchen’s life.

“I started crying,” said Kitchen.

The 64-year-old retired teacher’s assistant from Custer, S.D., received a double lung transplant on Aug. 4, 2003. The day before, they were Alicia’s lungs. Full story. Kevin Graman, SR

Does your driver’s license designate you as an organ donor? Why or why not?