By Hannah Van De Peer
A bereaved mom has become great friends with the recipient of her son’s bowel – after they found each other on Facebook.
Waylon Pietz, four, donated his heart, kidneys, and bowel after a chest of drawers fell on him and he was left on life support.
Three days later, his proud mom Madison, 25, noticed an 11-year-old ‘influencer’ Bella Thomson, who lives nearby, undergoing a bowel transplant.
After contacting her mom, Kyla, 40, on Facebook, the pair worked out the bowel was Waylon’s.
Now, the two families are firm friends, and Bella has been able to live a “full and fun-packed” life, thanks to Waylon’s donation.
The moms text every day and plan to meet up this summer.
Madison, a personal support worker from Petrolia, Ontario, said: “Waylon lives through Bella – it’s very overwhelming.
“Elsewhere, his heart still beats in another child – I reached out to the other two organ recipients through letters on January 29.
“It’s so rare to connect with any organ recipients, as legally the hospital can’t immediately provide you with any details, so I feel very blessed.”
Waylon’s accident happened on August 10, while being babysat at home.
Madison came home from work to find a chest of drawers had fallen on top of the toddler.
She called 911 – and an ambulance rushed him to University Hospital, Ontario, where he spent four days in the ICU.
While he was technically alive, doctors told Madison on August 14 that it would be very unlikely for him to wake up, and to make a decision on how to move forward.
She said: “He had a heartbeat – I wasn’t expecting that.
“I was waiting for them to call ‘time of death’, like you’d see on TV. But his body was still alive – he was just neurologically deceased.
“Organ donation was something I had to decide there-and-then – Waylon was autistic and non-verbal – he couldn’t make his own decisions, even before the accident.
“There was a lot of paperwork. You sign all these papers, and it’s a long waiting process.
“They’ll tell you the names and genders of the recipients – but the names have to be kept confidential for two years.
“There’s a chance you’ll never get to connect with your recipient family.”
Within three days, Waylon’s organs were sent to recipients all over Canada – with his bowel going to Bella, who was at SickKids Hospital, Toronto.
Bella from Swift Current, Canada, had Hirschsprung’s disease – which affects the large colon and affects a person’s ability to digest food.
She also had severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) and dwarfism – and Kyla was told the common cold could be fatal.
Kyla, a content creator said: “Bella had a very harsh, very traumatic start to life. She spent two years in the hospital without coming home.
“Within the first year alone, she had five bowel surgeries. But her immune system was so low, they couldn’t continue.
“She was airlifted to so many hospitals, and eventually ended up at SickKids, where she was put on the bowel transplant list at seven years old.
“They told us she wouldn’t survive the next five years.”
On August 17, 2023, Bella underwent the life-saving bowel transplant during a 20-hour op, while Kyla and husband Lyle Thomson, 37, agrologist, waited anxiously.
Kyla decided to look through her Facebook messages – after documenting Bella’s experience online.
She found she’d received a message from Madison, who told her she’d been following Bella’s journey for months – and she thought she might be receiving Waylon’s bowel.
Madison said: “I’d been receiving letters from the anonymous recipient – I wouldn’t usually just message a stranger on social media like this, but I felt an inexplicable connection.
“I told her I thought Bella might be receiving Waylon’s bowel – as the family liaison lady told us bowel transplants are incredibly rare.”
When Kyla saw the message from Madison, she instantly burst into tears, and the pair continued to stay in contact.
Bella’s transplant was a complete success, and six months later, Kyla says she’s “thriving”.
She said: “She used to need needle medication twice a day, and IV medication 20 times a day through her G-tube.
“Now, she takes five daily oral tablets – it’s such a significant difference!
“I’m such a proud mom – she’s absolutely thriving.
“We can take her on camping trips – something we’ve never been able to do because she spent her entire life in the hospital.”
They finally confirmed the donation by sending special stickers on the anonymized letters sent via the medical teams.
Madison said: “I get to have this connection to Waylon, and I still watch Bella’s videos all the time, and we text every day.”
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