Destiny's DONOR

Tyler Rosen is a rare example of a two-time living organ donor, and he hasn't stopped there. How a Will Smith movie and a poolside meeting changed lives forever

- KENYON WALLACE

There aren't many people in this world who have made it one of their life's goals to give away pieces of themselves literal, physical pieces.

Tyler Rosen is one of them.

The 34-year-old from Barrie, Ont., still recalls a pivotal moment in his life a decade ago, while watching the movie "Seven Pounds" alone in his bedroom and choking up with tears.

The movie, starring Will Smith, chronicles the efforts of a man beset by guilt who decides to save the lives of seven complete strangers by donating parts of his internal organs and bone marrow.

Rosen, who had recently begun donating blood, says he was inspired.

"This movie was the kick in my butt that I needed, challenging me to do more and be a better human," Rosen says. "I want to be remembered for the good I could contribute to the world."

Rosen not only ramped up the frequency of his blood donations (now 54 and counting), but also signed up to become a stem cell donor through Canadian Blood Services.

It can take months or years for doctors to match stem cell donors with patients, a process that frustrated Rosen, who was eager to make a difference. So he decided to up the ante.

Today, he is a rare example of a two-time living organ donor. In 2019, Rosen anonymously donated part of his liver through University Health Network's Centre for Living Organ Donation. Two-and-a-half years later, he donated a kidney. This year, he was deemed eligible to donate limbal stem cells, essentially tiny pieces of the cornea, that can be used to repair another's eyesight.

"People have said that I'm crazy, but the reason I do it is to give back," says Rosen, who works in sales in the tech industry. "If I'm healthy and I can help one person in this world, I feel like it's a job well done."

The need for organ donations