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Texas organ donor's legacy lives on through lives she saved

"Becca is still here. She lives on through these recipients," said Kim Collins.

JASPER, Texas — Everyday, Kim Collins listens to a bitter-sweet reminder of her late daughter Rebecca who, after passing away unexpectedly, still found a way to impact others.

"Becca is still here. She lives on through these recipients," said Kim Collins.

Born in 1994, Rebecca Collins moved around with her military family before finding her roots in Jasper.

"She graduated from Texas A&M, she did that in three years. Then she went to Stephen F. Austin and she got her master's in psychology, so her thing was that she wanted to help people," said Kim.

Kim says that her daughter lit up any room she went into and always had a smile on her face.

At a young age, Rebecca Collins made a very adult decision, signing up to be an organ donor.

"She didn't want anybody to feel bad and she would always try to lighten everything up. No matter what, she hated for people to feel bad about themselves or just sad in general," said Kim.

Sadly, Rebecca passed away unexpectedly in 2020.

However, Kim found the strength to carry on after making contact with the recipients of Rebecca's heart, lungs and kidney.

"Gabby was from Paris, Texas and she received Becca's heart, I heard from Gabriel, and Gabriel got Becca's right kidney and then there's Kimberly, she received Becca's lungs," said Kim.

To keep Rebecca's memory alive, her heart recipient sent Kim a very special gift.

"Necklaces with the first heartbeat and on the other side its a QR code and you can hear (the heartbeat)," said Kim.

Kim continues to be an advocate for organ donation knowing the impact her daughter made on those who needed it.

"You gave a part of yourself and as a result, other people are able to benefit from that, and that's the greatest, most unselfish gift you can possibly give," said Kim.

If you would like to learn more about donation you can go to Organ.com.

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