Woman Gets Lung Transplant, Marries Brother of Late Donor: ‘Never Thought in a Thousand Years’
Newlywed Jennifer Ellis didn't expect to fall in love with her donor's brother, whom she married on Sept. 28
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Bride and Groom at weddingA West Virginia woman has married the brother of her lung donor in a full circle moment.
Jennifer and Travis Ellis tied the knot on Sept. 28 after meeting and falling in love following her double lung transplant surgery. Jennifer received new lungs from Travis' late sister Jill Ellis in 2019.
Jennifer was born with Situs Inversus, a condition where her organs are flipped over, which later developed into a chronic illness called primary ciliary dyskinesia. The condition can cause lung damage, and led to her needed a new set of lungs, per Good Morning America.
Jennifer met her donor’s brother Travis after her surgery when he lived in Wisconsin at the time, according to the outlet. The pair had an “instant” connection as they quickly became friends and fell in love.
"When I met Travis for the first time, I thought he was cute as could be," Jennifer Cleveland Clinic. "But I never thought in a thousand years it would turn into anything. It wasn't even an option in my head because of the distance."
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A West Virginia bride has married the brother of her late donor"Whenever she was at the hospital, I would check on her so she didn't feel lonely," recalled Travis. “Everything just happened naturally.”
According to Cleveland Clinic, Travis proposed to Jennifer in July 2023.
The couple's family and friends attended their wedding in September, along with a very special guest of honor — Dr. Marie Budev, who is Jennifer’s doctor and the medical director of Cleveland Clinic's lung transplant and heart-lung transplant programs, per GMA.
"When Jennifer asked me to be the guest of honor at her wedding, I was so flattered. But the real guest of honor is her donor, and [she was] there with us in spirit,” Budev told the outlet.
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Jennifer said in a video recorded before her surgery, per GMA, that after learning she would be getting new lungs from her donor that she was “so excited,” though the moment was also “bittersweet.”
"It's definitely bittersweet because I know that some beautiful young lady had to pass away in order for me to get my lungs. I don't know that I'll ever know who you are, but thank you,” she said in the clip.
Jennifer added to Cleveland Clinic of her late donor Jill, "Becoming an organ donor saves lives. It allows others to create memories they wouldn't have if it wasn't for organ donation. Without my donor, I would have never met the love of my life."
PEOPLE has reached out to Jennifer and Travis for further comment.
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