Transplant recipient reveals how she fell in love with and married lung donor’s brother

A double lung transplant led a West Virginia woman not only to a healthy life, but also to the love of her life.

Jennifer Ellis, who was crowned Mrs. West Virginia America in 2015, was born with situs inversus, a rare genetic condition in which organs in the chest and abdomen become inverted within the body.

After a successful surgery in 2019, she kept in touch with the donor’s family and decided to meet them. During the visit, they were introduced to Travis, who would eventually become her future husband.

Jennifer was told she urgently needed a lung transplant when her health began to deteriorate rapidly.

It became clear that Jennifer was in urgent need of a lung transplant after her health began to deteriorate, and she was put on the waiting list in 2018 after spending ten months of the year in hospital.

Her situation worsened over time and initially found herself unable to catch her breath while exercising while preparing for her Ms. 2015 America Pageant.

Within just a few years, she had to be hooked up to oxygen 24 hours a day to get air into her lungs.

After ten months in hospital, she was given a place on a transplant waiting list in 2018.

‘I used to be very active, but that had to stop because it got to the point where I was constantly on machines. “I couldn’t really go anywhere except to the doctors,” she explained Cleveland Clinic.

But a few months after I was put on the waiting list, the call of hope came.

“When I found out, I immediately fell to the floor and started crying,” Jennifer added.

“It’s definitely bittersweet because I know a beautiful young lady had to pass away for me to get my lungs. I don’t know if I’ll ever know who you are, but thank you,” Jennifer said briefly in a video shared by ABC News.

After receiving her new lungs, she experienced transplant rejection and worked with her care team to build her lung strength through breathing exercises and medications.

Even though they lived over 700 miles away, they connected immediately. They kept in close contact when apart, and eventually began taking turns traveling and seeing each other

After receiving her new lungs, her body initially struggled to adapt, so she worked with her care team to build her lung strength through breathing exercises and medications.

But her second chance at life would never have been possible without her donor, Jill, whose family traveled from Wisconsin to West Virginia to meet Jennifer in person after talking back and forth for a while.

During that visit, she not only met her lung donor’s family, but also Travis Ellis, who would eventually become her forever person.

“When I first met Travis, I thought he was as cute as could be,” Jennifer added. ‘But I never thought it would become anything in a thousand years. Because of the distance it wasn’t even an option in my mind.’

Even though they lived over 700 miles away, they connected immediately. They kept in close contact when apart, and eventually began taking turns traveling and seeing each other.

“Every time she was in the hospital, I checked on her so she didn’t feel lonely,” Travis told the Cleveland Clinic. “Everything just happened so naturally.”

They began to develop a closer relationship as the months passed, which led to Travis moving to West Virginia so he could be closer to Jennifer and she could stay close to the clinic.

Last July, Travis popped the question. They tied the knot in September this year.

“I’m grateful that my daughter loved people, and that she was willing to help anyone, even in death,” Randy Ellis, Jill’s father, told the Cleveland Clinic.

Her second chance at life would never have been possible without her donor, Jill, whose family traveled from Wisconsin to West Virginia to meet Jennifer in person after communicating back and forth for some time.

‘We lost a daughter, but Jenny got her life back. Becoming an organ donor gives someone else a chance to live. It changes people’s lives.’

Jill’s family was able to find comfort in the passing of their loved ones, knowing that their daughter’s legacy lives on not only through Jennifer, but also through the five additional lives she saved thanks to her organs.

“Not only does she breathe with Jill’s lungs, she is also my daughter-in-law,” added Teresa Karl, Jill’s mother.

Despite living with reduced lung function, she is 100 percent healthier and happier than before. She enjoys life and can enjoy time with family and friends without having to rely on oxygen.

Jennifer said Jill’s gift to her has been nothing short of life-changing, ABC News added.

Her journey also developed into an unexpected love story.

“Becoming an organ donor saves lives,” she added. ‘It allows others to create memories that they would not have had without organ donation.’

‘Without my donor I would never have met the love of my life.’