Sergeant Matthew Whalen spent his adult life serving others as a father and as a soldier in the U.S. Army. And now, in his final moment, Whalen has found a way to serve two more people.
The 35-year-old served in Afghanistan and Iraq for a total of five years, yet passed away this December of a brain hemorrhage. His family finally made the impossible decision to withdraw his life support, and donate two of his organs to two veterans in need.
“In his final act on this Earth, it’s only fitting that he gave his life and in return saved two others,” Whalen’s friend and fellow soldier Sean Hatton Wrote to Facebook. “And it’s almost as if it were meant to be that the two donor recipients happened to be veterans.”
After Whalen’s wife Hannah, and their small children were left behind, the family set up a Go Fund Me page to help with the financial burden. So far, the donations have exceeded their $50,000 goal by over $30,000.
Watch the entire video below to see this soldier’s last moment before saving two veterans.
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[Featured image credit: Whalen family/GoFundMe]