|
|
|
R E S O L U T I O N
|
|
WHEREAS, Michael Fawzi Tarabay of Sour Lake has demonstrated |
|
extraordinary compassion and selflessness by becoming an organ |
|
donor and helping to save the life of a friend and colleague; and |
|
WHEREAS, Mike Tarabay met Marshall Goode in 2020, and the two |
|
developed a friendship while working together over the next several |
|
years; Mr. Goode had suffered from an inherited liver disease for a |
|
decade and a half, but his health had begun to rapidly decline in |
|
the months leading up to February 2024, when he was diagnosed with |
|
end-stage liver disease and given only 12 to 16 months to live; and |
|
WHEREAS, Devastated by the news, Mr. Goode and his family |
|
were left with few options; while undergoing the process of joining |
|
the liver transplant waiting list, Mr. Goode's condition worsened, |
|
forcing him to take a leave of absence from his job and to be |
|
hospitalized for a time; he was informed that, due to his blood |
|
type, a partial liver transplant from a living donor would offer the |
|
best chance of resolving his symptoms; and |
|
WHEREAS, After learning of the grim prognosis that his friend |
|
faced, Mr. Tarabay reached out to the Goode family and volunteered |
|
as a potential donor; testing revealed that Mr. Tarabay was a |
|
match, and he went on to endure a battery of tests, scans, and |
|
procedures over the next six months to prepare himself for |
|
transplant surgery; along the way, Mr. Tarabay and the Goode family |
|
received an outpouring of prayers and support from their Southeast |
|
Texas community and from churches as far away as North Carolina; and |
|
WHEREAS, On September 10, 2024, dual operations were |
|
performed on the two men; the surgeries were a success, and thanks |
|
to Mr. Tarabay's act of generosity, Mr. Goode faces a far more |
|
optimistic future; and |
|
WHEREAS, Mike Tarabay has deservedly been hailed a hero for |
|
his actions, and his inspiring gift to a friend in need is a |
|
testament to the most admirable qualities of the human spirit; now, |
|
therefore, be it |
|
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas |
|
Legislature hereby commend Michael Fawzi Tarabay for his lifesaving |
|
act as an organ donor and extend to Mr. Tarabay and Mr. Goode |
|
sincere best wishes for continued health and happiness; and, be it |
|
further |
|
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
|
prepared for Mr. Tarabay as an expression of high regard by the |
|
Texas House of Representatives. |