The grieving parents of two young road accident victims are to help set up an organ donation council next week in an effort to encourage more Bermudians to think about offering a gift of life after death.

With assistance from nursing staff at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital and coordinators from the New England Organ Bank, the committee aims to act as a support and information group, organising talks, events and fundraising to help raise the profile of organ donations.

At the moment, Bermuda only sees, on average, three or four donations a year - and some years there may only be one.

The hope is that more and more families will talk about the issue of organ donation and be prepared, one way or another, should they ever be unfortunate enough to have to consider it.

Carolann Tacklyn lost her 18-year-old son Darren Minors in a road accident 18 months ago. She said although her son had died at such a young age, she had gained much comfort from the fact that five people had received his major organs.

One of the recipients was Darren's cousin Menelik Isaac, who was in need of a kidney transplant. Last year, Ms Tacklyn travelled to the United States to meet three other recipients of her son's parts, and said they have stayed in touch ever since.

She hopes to encourage other grieving families to at least consider the option of organ donation so, like Darren, their loved ones can live on in other people.

Ms Tacklyn said when she was approached by Glenda Daniels, clinical coordinator for the Intensive Care Unit at the hospital, about the group, she felt it was much needed in Bermuda.

“I wanted to get involved because of the experience I had with the death of my son,” said Ms Tacklyn.

“I want to share my experience with others. I felt it comforting and it gave me a feeling of fulfilment to know that his death was not in vain, and, in a sense, that something came out of this tragic situation.

“By taking the decision to donate his organs meant that someone else was going to have a better life. I want to help educate people about how important organ donation is.”

Ms Tacklyn said often people do not even consider the issue of organ donation until they are asked by doctors in the intensive care unit whether they would allow their dead loved one's parts to be offered to someone in need.

But she said when people were dealing with the trauma of death, they were often unable to contemplate the option of organ donation.

“I believe there are a lot of misconceptions about organ donation in Bermuda and people aren't aware of death and what happens to a person's body,” she added.

“There needs to be more education and people need to start talking about it and becoming more aware of it. It's easier to talk about it before the situation, rather than after. People should talk to their families about how they feel now.”

And in January this year, Charmaigne Young Laws lost her 20-year-old daughter Chardre Yawana Outerbridge Young following a road accident two days after Christmas.

She said taking the decision to donate her daughter's organs, along with Chardre's father Andrew Outerbridge, was not difficult.

And she said, as a result of Chardre's gifts, including her heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, and small bowel, five people in the US, including a 21-year-old single father, were doing very well with her organs.

And she said many others were experiencing enhanced lives after receiving her skin, blood vessels and ossicles.

She too is getting involved in the setting up of the new committee on Monday. But she said her aim was not to encourage others to do it, but to educate people and to act as a support network.

Mrs. Laws said: “I can't encourage other people to do it because it's a very personal decision, but I was very interested in getting involved in the committee to learn more, listen to what people have to say, and to help other people in the same situation.

“Some people can't see beyond their loved one and don't want to disturb them. I felt the same way ten years' ago, but not now. For me it wasn't a difficult decision. I didn't need a support system because we donated her organs, but I need one now. The loss of Chardre is more burdensome on me now. Finally, I'm realising that she isn't coming home.

“Some days I still can't believe that she is gone. I really, really miss her.”

The intensive care unit's Mrs. Daniels said the committee will begin to form on Monday when with the help of Pam Albert and Ginnie Teed, from the New England Organ Bank, to which Bermuda is affiliated.

The two coordinators are arriving on the Island on Sunday for a week to help train and advise nursing staff about organ donation and how to approach it. She said the bank's coordinators visit every year to talk about the importance of organ and tissue donation.

Mrs. Daniels said: “In the ICU department, we want to promote organ and tissue donation and believe the council can greatly help with that.

“We thought that if we had a group of passionate people it would greatly help. There are a number of family members, like Charmaigne and Carolann, who want to get involved, as well as the Red Cross.

“We want to go to schools, churches, businesses and organisations to talk about organ donation and to educate people.

“And the council would also act as a support group for families who have donated organs. Families who have gone through it could talk to families who are faced with the decision. Our aim is to spread information and get people talking. We need to get people talking and considering it.

“We want everyone to go home and talk to their families and next of kin about how they feel about organ donation. They can pick up donor cards and more information. We want to raise the profile in Bermuda.”

Driving licenses now stipulate whether or not the holder wishes to be a donor, but people can also pick up information and donor cards from doctor's surgeries, Post Offices and banks.