PHOENIX — Saturday’s Fiesta Bowl Parade featured a special entry: families of organ and tissue donors, along with recipients who benefited from those life-saving transplants.
The marchers aimed to highlight the profound importance of giving the gift of life.
One year after the death of Adison Leigh Rayburn, her parents, Rob and Shannon, participated in the parade to honor her as a heroic organ donor.
“She was a lover of life. She loved all people, all walks of life,” Shannon, Adison’s mother, shared.
They weren’t alone on their journey. Along the parade route, 25 family members joined them in honoring Adison, recognizing her as the organ donor hero she truly was.
Adison passed away in 2023 following an asthma attack.
“We got a phone call in the middle of the night that she had an asthma attack, and that she was being transported to a hospital on life support,” Shannon recalled. “We got there and found out she had suffered an anoxic brain injury, and that she was not compatible with living anymore.”
Adison, who understood the life-saving power of organ donation, had registered as a donor twice.
“One year ago today, she left this world, but a few pieces of her stayed behind,” Shannon said. “And they’ve saved the lives of three Arizona residents here, and we’re just grateful to be here today to honor her in this way.”
As an organ and tissue donor, Adison saved three lives and provided gifts for research.
“It was right in line with who she was as a person,” Shannon said. “With every step we take today, we’re honoring her and all the people who have donated their gifts to save other people’s lives as well.”
Heart recipient Laura Gober shared her experience with organ donation.
“My heart just stopped working,” she explained. “And so, within a month, I received a new heart, and it means life.”
Gober participated in the 2024 Fiesta Bowl Parade to honor her donor.
“I know it’s very hard for organ donors to say goodbye to their loved one, but they’re living on,” Gober said. “I live with my donor every day, and they’re doing great.”
Gober emphasized how well her heart is doing, and how she and her donor continue living on together every day.
“Every minute, every step, I am grateful,” she said.
The gathering was both meaningful and emotional, underscoring how organ donations allow families like Adison’s to find peace — her spirit lives on.
“Register to donate,” her mom urged. “Because you just never know whose life you might save, and it might be your own that you might get saved someday, so be in a position to save a life.”
In the U.S., over 100,000 people are currently waiting for a life-saving organ donation.
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