Ajax, ON Local 1092 fire fighter Nadine Young recently went beyond the call of duty to help the son of a fellow fire fighter who is fighting a rare form of liver cancer.
Young, a 14-year veteran fire fighter, donated a portion of her liver to Jarrett Singer, 18, the son of Ajax fire fighter Mark Singer. The surgeries took place May 13, and both are recovering well, says Ajax Local 1092 President Dan Bonnar.
Bonnar says the story has exemplified the sense of duty that fire fighters feel. “I think it shows how fire fighters are wired. That’s the reality; we’re there when someone is in need.”
When it was determined that no one in Singer’s family was a match for donation to Jarrett, Local 1092 used social media to put out a call to fire fighters, police and paramedics across Canada to get tested as potential donors. Young was one of about 100 who came forward and turned out to be a perfect match.
Bonnar says Young, who is known internationally as a fitness model, did not hesitate about the donation for one second once she learned she was a match.
After learning about the pending donation, Bonnar approached the fire chief who, along with the Town of Ajax, graciously agreed to allow members to donate sick days to Young for her recuperation. Local 1092 members came through in droves, donating more than 2,000 unused sick days, well in excess of what will be needed. The unused sick days will be returned.
“Our members came through big time, and the Town was very good about it, too,” Bonnar says.
Both Young and the Singer family are now experiencing costs that are not otherwise covered. Separate GoFundMe pages have been set up, and Bonnar encourages the fire fighting community to support both. The pages are https://www.gofundme.com/nadine-young-beyond-the-call-of-duty and https://ca.gofundme.com/f/SingerFamily.
Unused funds from the Nadine Young GoFundMe page will be given to the Singer family as Jarrett will require ongoing care and medical expenses.
