A Placerville teenager who died last year will be honored New Years Day for his foresight in designating his organs for donation.
A floral likeness of Scott Santana will appear on this year's "Donate Life" float in the Tournament of Roses Parade. He was 17 when he died in a car crash last May. Santana's mother, Deanna says the family had talked about organ donation, but didn't know he had agreed to be an organ donor, "When Scott was pronounced brain dead, we sort of were in limbo. We thought we wanted to donate his organs and tissues. But, when the organ procurement organization was able to tell us that Scott had chosen that, it made all the difference in the world and gave us the strength to know we were fulfilling his wish."
The Santana family had a part in creating the "floragraph"
that will be on the float along with the pictures of more than 70
other donors. The floragraph is made of dried flowers and coffee
grounds. According to the Organ Procurement and
Transplantation Network, there are more than 116,000 people in the
United States waiting for a transplant.
At least six people received Scott's organs. Deanna
Santana says a 67-year-old grandfather of three received her son's
heart.
