Generosity comes in many forms. 

In 2022, Eileen Harlin, 39, of Maryland, had part of her liver transplanted to her mother, Julia, 71. The operation done at the University of Maryland Medical Center saved her mother from non-alcoholic steatohepatitis cirrhosis, which had damaged her liver. 

The treatment for the condition usually requires waiting for a liver from a deceased donor that matches her blood type. Harlin, who has the same blood type as her mom, did not want to risk the latter’s life by waiting too long for a donor liver to become available, so she donated her own. 

Later, the mother’s kidney also started to fail, requiring another transplant. Again, the selfless Harlin donated one of her kidneys, and it was successfully transplanted into her mom in December, giving her a new lease on life. 

Dr. Daniel Maluf, the Harlins’ transplant surgeon, told Fox News it was a “unique event” for a patient to donate two organs. 

Another selfless woman from California hosted a dance for Parents Helping Parents, a San Jose organization that provides parenting support to families of people with disabilities and special needs. 

The dance took place at Eagle Ridge Golf Club in Gilroy, and PHP Executive Director Maria Daane described it as a wonderful way to celebrate the spirit of the holiday season, Fox News reported.

Aside from ballroom dancing, “guests enjoyed appetizers and a dessert bar, a photo booth with props and indoor fireworks to celebrate the night,” according to Fox. 

The event, including the food and the venue, was initially intended to be the anonymous donor’s wedding reception, but the bride-to-be called off the nuptials after she learned something about her fiancé, NBC Bay Area reported. The $15,000 reception cost was non-refundable, so the woman, who has a sibling helped by PHP, donated it to the organization. 

 “I was incredibly touched that a bride, facing an extremely stressful and difficult situation, was willing to look past her own pain and consider how to use the significant financial deposit for the wedding to bring joy to others,” Fox News quoted Daane as saying.