Brady Smith died of a brain aneurysm on July 4, 2010, just three weeks before his 31st birthday. You will hear many people who knew Brady describe him as “loving.” Indeed, he was. His last conscious moments were spent laughing with his friends. In fact, he had made the statement “I’ve never laughed so hard in my life.”

Brady was raised by his mother in a household that included his two older sisters. His mother recalls that it was at times rough financially and that, one Easter when Brady was four years old, she had scraped together enough money to buy the children new Easter outfits. After picking out his clothes, Brady sobbed all the way to the checkout. When his mother pressed him as to what was wrong, thinking it wasn’t like him to be unhappy with what we’d chosen, he finally said, “No Mama, you never buy you anything, so please, please don’t buy me anything either.”

And, it is that unselfish nature that led him to become an organ, tissue and cornea donor.

Brady is a hero who — in his final hour  — gave a lifetime.