8 THE QUEENS COURIER • DECEMBER 23, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Astoria family to honor late son for organ
donation at Rose Bowl Parade in California
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Christine Perrelli of Astoria will be honoring
her late son, Anthony “AJ” Perrelli,
at the Rose Bowl Parade in Pasadena,
California, in January for his lifesaving
organ donation that has given two people
a second chance at life.
“We’re excited because it’s a great way to
honor him as well as the others,” Perrelli
said. “For us, he always thought he’d live
in California as an actor, so it’s kind of
like putting him where he should be and
to have that fi nale for him.”
Each year, the 58 organ procurement
organizations (OPO) across the country
have the privilege of honoring one
organ donor and their family on a fl oat at
the annual Rose Bowl Parade. Th is year,
LiveOnNY, the organization that oversees
organ donation and transplantation in
the greater New York area, will honor AJ,
a professional dancer, singer, actor, stage
performer and father, who died at the age
of 26 in October 2013.
AJ’s fi nal casting call was as an organ
donor. In AJ’s life and aft er his death, people
worldwide were inspired to pursue
their passions in the arts and also signed
up to become an organ donor, Perrelli
said.
According to Perrelli, AJ was in the
prime of his life, having traveled the world
for two and a half years before he came
back to New York to pursue his passion
of becoming an actor. Perrelli remembers
her son as “multitalented, a family guy
and a nurturing person” who went out of
his way to help other people.
“When he was going to China, and he
was 19 at the time, I said, ‘AJ if anything
happens to you, what would you want
me to do?’ He says, ‘Mom, I’m an organ
donor, and if they can use any of my parts,
do it.’ I said, ‘Even in China?’ He said, ‘Yes,
even in China,’” Perrelli said.
AJ’s fi nal request was fulfi lled when
Mercia Pantea, who resides in western
New York, received a successful liver and
kidney transplant.
“I feel excellent. I feel like when I was
young, although I’m old,” Pantea said. “I
don’t have any headaches or pain, except
for when I lift weights. I cannot possibly
complain — everything is working 100%.”
According to Pantea, he was on the waiting
list for two years, which he described
Mercia Pantea (l.), a recent liver and kidney recipient, and Astoria resident Christine Perrelli, mother of organ and kidney donor AJ Perrelli, show their
decor honoring AJ for the annual Rose Bowl Parade fl oat.
as a worrisome and nerve-wracking time
period. Upon receiving news of a donor,
Pantea had met with AJ’s family.
“It was emotional, because, as a parent,
I understand how hard it is to meet with
a person that your child donated an organ
to. It was a really touching moment,”
Pantea said. “Th ere is an unspoken sentiment
that you have when you realize aft er
the transplant that someone else passed
away. Th e chances you got are so tremendously
incredible. You think about it day
and night — it’s mind boggling.”
Perrelli, who had met with Pantea twice,
said it was amazing to see how well he and
another recipient were doing following
their transplant procedure. In November,
Perrelli and Pantea fi nished their decoration
of AJ that will be placed on the fl oat.
“AJ was one of the few at the time that
gave two organs to two people. I don’t
know how common it is now, but at the
time it wasn’t common for someone to
give two organs per person,” Perrelli said.
“When I think about it, these people have
eight more years with their children and
grandchildren. I think about how I would
be at this age and my grandkids, and am
grateful to have met Mercia and understand
that my son is part of him.”
To honor AJ’s memory, Perrelli is continuing
to champion the importance of
organ donation.
Following AJ’s death, a fundraising page
was set up to pay for burial costs. Perrelli
made a promise that any money left over
would go to a fund established in AJ’s
name for the arts. What had started out
as a scholarship fund turned into a fullfl
edged nonprofi t, called Th e AJ Project,
and an agreement that organ donor education
and awareness would always be a
part of each and every program the organization
does.
Photo courtesy of LiveonNY
AJ’s Project has hosted several networking
events; resourced assistance for a ballet
dancer in need; produced two fi lm
pieces for organ donation; hosted a Tony
awards viewing party event featuring
guest performers and comedy; produced
a burlesque show; and hosted two annual
friend raising/donor awareness events
showcasing amazing talent.
According to Perrelli, when she became
involved in advocating for organ donation,
there was a lot of misinformation
and questions around the subject.
“I found that the inaccuracies and misinformation
were so great, that there
needed to be a way to get the real story out
and to learn more and tell people about it.
Th is gave me a chance to speak about my
son, but to really turn the story to a positive
and give correct information,” Perrelli
said. “It started out that way, but now I
understand it’s a greater purpose.”
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