Giving Back a Child’s Future
In the middle of a hot Michigan summer, Colton Thompson and his brothers set off to go fishing; Colton’s brother had saved up for a new lure, and it was time to test it out.
Along the water’s edge, Colton knelt to tie his shoe, just as his brother drew back the fishing rod. With the flick of a wrist, the lure caught Colton in his left eye. Colton’s parents, Katelyn and Jacob, rushed him to the hospital, at first receiving good news—rather than digging deep into the eye, the lure was embedded in Colton’s eyelid. It was possible the eye would heal on its own following emergency surgery to remove the lure.
But Colton’s vision regressed as a significant scar formed and grew in density, and he eventually kept his left eye closed because he had virtually no vision.
Thanks to a generous donor, Colton received a sight-restoring cornea transplant. Today, he isn’t scared to do any of the things he loves, like swimming and riding four-wheelers with his cousins or playing quarterback with his brothers during football. In a letter to the donor family, he wrote, “Thank you for donating a cornea for helping people see.”
Submitted by Eversight