As a veteran school nurse, Kathleen Nolan of the Sayville Teachers Association on Long Island has spent many hours in the profession of making people feel better. But it was only recently that Nolan learned one of the most important lessons of her life - what it's like to be really sick.

Nolan underwent major surgery and a lengthy recovery process early this year after making the heroic decision to donate a piece of her liver to a 62-year-old woman whom she had never met.

"At any given time, 17,000 people are waiting for a liver," Nolan said. "It could have been my mother or sister."

But it wasn't. The only connection the organ recipient had with Nolan was that they worshiped at the same church.

In the church bulletin, Nolan read a "desperate plea" from the woman, whose liver had been decimated by a genetic disorder and whose family and friends had proven to be poor matches.

Nolan couldn't get the story out of her mind. After talking about it with her husband and four children, she decided to set up a meeting.

"I felt a connection with her right away," Nolan said. "Once I put a face to it, I didn't want to let her down."

Because the human liver is capable of regeneration, a donor only needs to provide a healthy piece of his or her liver. That piece will grow into a full liver in the recipient's body, and the donor's liver will regrow to full size as well.

When it comes to liver transplants, living donors are often preferable, Nolan said, because to get a cadaver liver, you often have to be "on death's doorstep."

Of course, donating a liver is no picnic. The donor's gall bladder must be removed; it's in the way during surgery.

No easy recovery

Nolan now bears a long scar running from the bottom of her rib cage to her sternum, and she missed a month-and-a-half of school as she dealt with typical post-operative problems such as infections, discomfort and fatigue.

But when she sees the results of her sacrifice, she knows it was worth it.

First, both Nolan and the organ recipient have made full recoveries. Nolan has made a new friend, and the two speak several times a week.

Second, Nolan has been overwhelmed by the support she has received from her union brothers and sisters at the STA, which is led by Tim Southerton.

STA members regularly brought hot meals to Nolan and her family, and several have signed up to become organ donors themselves.

And, of course, Nolan said she was moved by the support of her husband and children, who were remarkably understanding about the sacrifice she was making.

Nolan's oldest child is 17 and her youngest is four. She admits it was the 4-year-old who asked her the toughest question.

"She wanted to know why dad couldn't do this instead," Nolan recalled with a laugh.

- Kevin Hart