Teen Sanjay Samuel remembered as a hero for saving lives through organ donation
By Allen Devlin
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NEW YORK (WCBS) — A Queens teenager helped save multiple lives after someone took his.
Sanjay Samuel, 13, was shot in the head after getting into an argument with another teen on Sept. 22 and died from his injuries two days later. His organs were donated to help people in need of transplants.
A community gathered in loss Tuesday as hundreds met on Linden Boulevard to honor Sanjay’s life and legacy.
“If there’s one thing that I know, it’s that no parent should bury their child,” one speaker said.
Looking on was Samuel’s family, with his mother, Vilene Griffith, front and center. His uncle, Elvin Griffith, took the stage and spoke passionately on the family’s behalf, calling for more action to protect the community’s youth.
“If we care about these 13- and 14-year-olds in our community, we are failing miserably,” Elvin Griffith said.
But in Samuel’s passing, there is new life.
“The old saying said that out of one came many,” Elvin Griffith said.
Samuel’s heart, liver, kidneys, lungs and pancreas were donated in his passing and recovered by LiveOnNY.
“They know what he represented and what he would have wanted,” LiveOnNY President and CEO Leonard Achan said.
The organs were quickly used to save the lives of five people in need across the country.
“He gets to be remembered as somebody who saved five lives,” Achan said. “He gets to be remembered as a hero.”
Outside of all of those who were personally impacted, five complete strangers are now a part of Samuel’s story.
“We thank you for his life. We thank you for a mother that raised him with a good and pure heart. And we thank you that you gave of Sanjay, even in his transition, to save others,” another speaker said.
A 16-year-old boy has been charged with murder in connection to Samuel’s death. If convicted, the suspect faces up to 25 years to life in prison.
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