Mother & son team set to compete at Transplant Games of America
By RICHIE HALL
Jacquin Gallagher and her son Andrew Herran will be traveling to Birmingham, Ala. next week for one of the more meaningful sports competitions in the country.
Gallagher and Herran are part of Team Indiana for the 2024 Transplant Games of America, which take place from July 5 to 10 in Birmingham. The Transplant Games of America bring together thousands of organ transplant recipients, living donors, donor families, caregivers, transplant and donation professionals, those awaiting transplant, supporters and others in support of organ, tissue and cornea donation and transplantation.
Gallagher, who lives in Westfield, donated a kidney to her daughter Erica, saving her life. In that same year, Gallagher’s oldest son Nicholas also received a life-saving kidney transplant. Both were past competitors at the Transplant Games. Andrew, of Indianapolis, received a life-saving kidney transplant at IU Health in Indianapolis in 2022; this will be his first time competing at the Games.
“If you’re interested in competing at the Games, you can contact the Indiana Donor Network,” said Gallagher. “They are the vehicle for the athletes.” Gallagher said that athletes must have permission from their respective doctors to compete, even living donors such as herself.
Team Indiana is sending 53 competitors to the games. They’ll be joined by a sizable contingent of supportive family members, friends and loved ones. Indiana has been represented by a team at the games since 1990.
Gallagher is competing in swimming and track at this year’s Games, while Herran is competing in cornhole and bowling.
“I think it’s exciting because as a young child, he was tagging along with the family when the others competed,” said Gallagher. “He’s been to the games multiple times, but he was not allowed to compete.”
Gallagher said Herran is competing to honor his donor, as well as his brother and sister, both of whom passed away in 2023.
“They both had their transplants in 1993,” said Gallagher. They both competed in a Transplant Games for the first time in 1994 in Atlanta.
“We did several U.S. games and we also did two world games,” said Gallagher. “We went to England for one and we went to Australia for one.”
Herran said that he wants to “just have fun and do well at the games” when he competes this year. His transplant took place on Nov. 29, 2022 and Gallagher said it “has been very successful.”
“It will be exciting this year, because we’ll both be competing,” said Gallagher. She will be competing in the national Games for the fourth time; Gallagher has also competed in the international Games twice.
The 2024 Transplant Games will showcase 20 different athletic and recreational competitions. Those competitions range from traditional sports such as basketball, golf, volleyball and tennis, to activities such as Texas Hold’Em poker, darts, trivia challenge and ballroom dancing.
“Usually you have some very strong athletes, but you also have people that are there just to honor their donors and what that’s meant to them,” said Gallagher. She also pointed out that there’s more than just sports at the Games. The purpose of the event comes through during the Games’ opening ceremonies.
“In the past, it’s a very emotional one where they recognize all the donors that gave their life for that person’s life to continue, and then also the living donors,” said Gallagher.
There will also be closing ceremonies on the last day of the games, which Gallagher said “draw everybody together, which is pretty impressive.”
“To look at all the people, none of them would be alive if they hadn’t had their transplants, so it’s a pretty emotional time,” said Gallagher.
For more about this year’s Team Indiana participants, visit Donate Life Indiana’s Team Indiana webpage. Learn more about the Transplant Games of America online.