Every Christmas, nurse Mini Karuppan writes a letter to a family she doesn't know. She doesn't know where they live or their loved one's name, but they saved her life.
For Mini, 46, had an unwelcome surprise when she entered her early 40s - she discovered she needed a new kidney.
She was placed on the national waiting list and had expected to wait for five or six years for the right donor match to be found. Being of Indian heritage, it potentially made it even more challenging, as donation levels are traditionally lower from black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.
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But Mini's life was transformed just two years later in 2017 - all thanks to a person she never met but always thinks about, especially at Christmas time.
Mini, a senior clinical research nurse in diabetes who lives with her husband, Baz, and 11-year-old son, Sid, in Altrincham, Trafford, liaises with the donor's family through the North West Organ Donations Services Team. Her letters are managed by them anonymously.
Mini, who is based at Manchester Royal Infirmary, writes a letter to the family twice a year to thank them - at Christmas and in May, a month she calls her 'kidneyversary'.
She told the Manchester Evening News : "I do not know who my donor is. We do not know anything about the donor at all. This year I have written a few words and requested it to go into a Christmas card, together with some flowers.
"I write to say that I am thinking of them. I said that life has been good for me - and to say that they are not forgotten. I want them to know they are not forgotten. They are always in my thoughts but it is good to put it all into words. It is a small thing to do for such a big, life-changing thing for me."
Mini, who started her nursing career in Manchester 21 years ago, was operated on by her own colleagues at the MRI. Prior to the diagnosis, she felt unwell and a routine trip to her GP in 2015 revealed she had high blood pressure. Subsequent blood tests revealed one of her kidneys was not functioning correctly.
"I was very lucky and only had to wait just over two years," Mini said, as she praised her healthcare team. "It was five years ago and I'm so lucky to be still working where I started back in 2001.
"I came home from work last year to discover my son, Sid, had registered his name with the organ donation list. I was quite surprised at first. However, he has seen the impact and the positive difference it has made to our family. I'm so thankful I was able to get a matching kidney so fast and really grateful to the donor and their family
In total, there are currently 782 people across Greater Manchester who need a life-saving organ transplant. They all need people to say 'yes' to organ donation.
Last year, Manchester hospitals carried out 312 transplant operations - a rise - and latest figures show 166 were recorded in the first six months of 2022. Nationally, more than 6,800 people in the UK are spending the festive season waiting for an organ transplant, with more than 220 of those children.
Laurence Frys, specialist nurse for organ donation at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, urged the public this Christmas and New Year to join the NHS Organ Donor Register.
He said: "Organ donation saves lives and one organ donor can save or transform up to nine lives and even more by donating tissues as well. How amazing it is that we are able to provide the skilled service of transplanting a heart or lung at Wythenshawe hospital, as well as pancreas and kidney at Manchester Royal Infirmary hospital - all under the umbrella of one hospital trust.
"I know that more families agree to donation if they know their loved one was on the Organ Donor Register. Save your family from having to guess what you would have wanted. Join the NHS Organ Donor Register and let your family know your decision. One day it could be someone you love in need of a transplant."
To find out more about organ donation visit: www.organdonation.nhs.uk or telephone 0300 123 2323.
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