Mark Dolter had big plans for a life with new lungs. The 51-year-old wanted to marry his fiancée on a beach in Hawaii and watch his brand new grandson grow up.
“He was born just last week,” Dolter said in an interview with Global News in March. “I’d love to be able to throw a baseball with him two, three years down the road.”
Suffering from a rare degenerative lung disease, Dolter spent nearly 250 days living in the intensive care unit at the Peter Lougheed Hospital. His only hope was a double lung transplant and each day that passed, Dolter and his fiancée Martine Striemer prayed they’d receive a phone call.
READ MORE: Awaiting lung transplant, Airdrie man makes organ donation plea
“He received that call late March 31 and was transported to Edmonton immediately by air,” Streimer said in an e-mail. “I was able to see him off and meet him there before he went into surgery.”
Dolter’s transplant began at 11 a.m. on April 1. Striemer said Dolter died during surgery.
“The surgeons battled 13 hours to try and extract his lungs and make room for the new lungs.
“He fought incredibly hard until he could fight no longer.”
Before he died, Dolter had spoken out about the need for organ donors, urging everyone to join Alberta’s organ and tissue donor registry.
“I just don’t think people realize how important it is, or they just don’t realize how simple it is to become one.”
There are approximately 4,000 Canadians who are waiting for an organ transplant. One donor can save up to eight lives, but according to data obtained under access-to-information laws, only five per cent of Albertans are registered to give.
READ MORE: Alberta’s organ donor program lags far behind other provinces
Starting Monday, April 18, Global News is partnering with organ donation and transplant agencies across Canada to sign up 48,000 people across Canada to become organ donors in 48 hours.
Join us on social media and use the hashtag #48in48 to share the message. It’s easy to sign up to be an organ donor – just visit liveon.ca.
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