THE day before she died, little Milly Hope Soderstrom spoke about her aunt.
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"I miss Clare," Milly said of her mother's late sister.
"She would love this nice day, wouldn't she?"
This would be the last time Milly would talk about her aunt (Clare Lannen) who drowned in the turbulent waters of the Upper Allyn seven months earlier.
The next afternoon, tragedy struck the Largs family again when Milly, 8, drowned after suffering what was believed to be a febrile convulsion while having a bath.
By the end of the following day, Milly, the crazy, fun, outgoing young tomboy, was gone.
Beside the grief that fills the Soderstrom home, there is comfort in the knowledge that Milly's heart beats in the body of another child, her lungs are helping another to breathe, while the rest of her organs are keeping other children alive.
"Three of those children are out of the woods and talking to their parents," Milly's mum, Jane Richardson, said. "And the little child who has Milly's heart is doing well and so is the one with her lungs.
"This is the only thing giving me some sort of comfort, because I can't make sense of anything that's happened."
Milly died at John Hunter Hospital after coming down with the flu just days before.
"Milly wanted a bath to try to make her feel better and she kept turning on the hot water, so I gave her a bit of a serve," Jane said.
"But after about 10 minutes, I noticed Milly had stopped coughing so Ivy [Milly's sister] jumped off the lounge and ran into the bathroom.
"I followed, not thinking for a minute anything would be wrong."
Finding her daughter unconscious, Jane dragged her from the tub while her partner started CPR on the little girl.
"Ivy ran across the road to get help and I called an ambulance," Jane said. "The paramedics managed to get Milly's heart beating, but they couldn't get her to breathe."
Milly was flown to John Hunter Hospital, where she was rushed into the intensive care unit.
"By about midnight, the doctors told us things weren't good," Jane said. "But I already knew that. Milly couldn't breathe by herself. There was nothing there, she had gone."
Growing up, Jane had been acutely aware that a lung transplant would have benefited her sister Clare's life.
But it wasn't until she saw her daughter's still body, despite the robust beating of her heart, that she made the decision to try to save the lives of others.
"I remember how perfect Milly looked," Jane said.
"Like she was going to wake up and pull the tube out and start being Milly again.
"The doctors kept saying her heart was so strong and that she was such a strong little girl and it was then I decided that I didn't want her life to be a waste.
"If Clare had been given a new set of lungs, she would have led a completely different life.
"But it's not really something you think about.
"It's not like I ever sat down with Milly and talked about it.
"She was a little girl who wasn't meant to go anywhere; she was supposed to stay."
The life of Milly Hope Soderstrom will be remembered and celebrated at 10am on Thursday at St Stephen's Presbyterian Church, East Maitland.
Milly's family has asked for donations to be made to Transplant Australia instead of flowers.
"I do think it would be just wonderful if one of her organs went to a boy," Jane said.
"If part of Milly was still out there, inside a little boy, she would just love that."
THE father of one of Australia’s youngest organ donors is calling for the government to follow the lead of other countries and impose a new system that lists all adults as potential donors unless they state otherwise.
In 2004, Zaidee Rose Alexander Turner died suddenly from a burst blood vessel in her brain.
As a result, Zaidee, 7, donated her organs to save or improve the lives of seven others. At the time, Zaidee was the only child in Victoria under 16 to be a donor.
‘‘The current system of organ donation in Australia is not working.
‘‘It has never worked and it never will,’’ Zaidee’s father and CEO of Zaidee’s Rainbow Foundation Allan Turner said.
‘‘Australia has one of the worst donation rates when it comes to organ/tissue donation and a horrifying number of children will die within 12 months because of a lack of donations.
‘‘It’s time to make this major change so millions of Australians automatically become registered donors on a national list, with the added option for anyone over 18 to opt-out if they wish to do so.’’
The system already exists in countries, including Wales, Spain, Austria, Belgium and Singapore.
‘‘This system will give those waiting for a transplant a better chance. Just ask those who have a child who will die waiting for a liver or a heart,’’ Mr Turner said.
Zaidee’s Rainbow Foundation is now collecting signatures to present to the Health Minister, Sussan Ley.
‘‘It is now time for change. It is now time to move forward. We know current organ donation rates are far too low and we know far too many Australians have to wait for organs,’’ Mr Turner said.
‘‘We can change this.’’
