The things you do. They way you make people feel. The selfless acts of service and community. They don’t go unnoticed.
Graham Nesbitt managed the local skating arena in Seaforth, Ontario, he always went above and beyond the call of duty—opening the rink early, staying late, he faced wild weather to make sure that the boys and girls in Seaforth could get in as many hours possible on the ice.
Ryan and Cal O’Reilly, who skated under Nesbitt’s watchful eye, both went on to play in the NHL. Their mother, Bonnie never forgot Nesbitt’s selfless nature.
Ryan captains the Stanley Cup-winning St. Louis Blues. Cal is currently on the Lehigh Valley Phantoms’ roster.
Even though he retired in 2003, when the community learned Nesbitt needed a kidney donation, locals lined up to be tested to see if they might be a match. One of those people was Bonnie O’Reilly. We’ve seen this act before and it’s no less inspiring this time around.
Nesbitt had Berger’s disease; a progressive condition that lessens the kidneys’ ability to filter blood, by 2019 a kidney transplant became the 65-year-old’s only option for survival.
Once O’Reilly learned she was a match, she planned for the surgery. “What you’ve done for my boys, helping them achieve their goal of playing professional hockey, it’s the least we can do,’” Nesbitt’s son Joe said quoting O’Reilly in a conversation with CBC.
The transplant took place on March 3. Both O’Reilly and Nesbitt came through the procedure well and are on their way to recovery.
Nesbitt’s wife, Pam, deeply touched by O’Reilly’s generosity, took to social media, “From our family to you and yours Bonnie, thanks for the gift of a lifetime…Your selfless act means more than you’ll ever know.”
Acts of kindness, large or small, make a difference. From opening the rink at the break of dawn to undergoing surgery to save a live. We are all on the same team.
If you have a story of loving kindness, please share it with us this month.
Original Story: The Good News Network
