‘Bench of hope’ dedicated to two organ donors

Handcrafted bench with purple ribbons dedicated to Michael Collins and Olivia Sonetz. (Crystal Donaldson)

 

By Crystal Donaldson

NORMAL – Two lives were honored Thursday afternoon with a bench dedication for Olivia ‘Livi’ Sonetz and Michael Collins.

Sonetz and Collins both attended Normal West High School, were organ donors and died tragically in separate car crashes.

Normal West and the Gift of Hope partnered to create a handcrafted metal bench with two purple ribbons which was revealed in a dedication ceremony outside the front doors of the high school.

Speakers at the dedication recalled memories of the former students and encouraged those in attendance to keep their memories alive.

Associate Principal Angie Codron said she hopes the bench can promote organ donation the right way.

“As people come in we just hope that maybe this will remind people to think about that before they are in that situation where it’s a tougher decision to make,” said Codron.

Sonetz was a 17 year old senior at Normal West when she died in a car crash after leaving softball practice in March.

Collins graduated from Normal West in 2010 where he was a member of the baseball team. He died in a car crash at 22 years old, just weeks before he was supposed to graduate from Illinois State University in 2014.

Collins’ mother, Kelly Collins, said she is proud of her son’s ‘intentional choice to be an organ donor’.

“I’m reminded that these four lives that received his organs can now enjoy time around the dinner table with their families,” said Collins. “And though we miss him terribly and grieve him still today, their lives are better off because of organ donation.”

Both honoree’s organs and tissues were able to help people in need across the county.

Crystal Donaldson can be reached at [email protected]

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