They say fate has a funny way of bringing people into your life when you least expect it. One easily could argue that meeting your true love after a life-saving heart transplant probably qualifies as such a time.
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Yet that’s exactly what happened to a man named Collin Kobelja and a woman named Taylor Givens. In 2011, the future couple found themselves in the hospital at the exact same time; both were in desperate need of heart transplants.
Taylor’s symptoms had come on quickly. Doctors thought her heart palpitations and trouble breathing were merely the result of anxiety. But then they discovered a cold had enlarged her heart and she just a week for her family to find a proper donor and save her life. The miracle happened on day six.
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Collin Kobelja, who was hospitalized in the next room, had been born with a bad heart and received his first transplant as a toddler. Collin, who was now 22, suddenly discovered that heart was failing and he needed a second transplant.
Although the two never met during their hospital stay, their families became close after passing in the hospital hallways. Their kids heard about each other through relatives. While Collin said he wasn’t interested in connecting, they did follow each other on social media.
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Fast forward to 2016. Collin was visiting the hospital where he’d had his second transplant on the 5th year anniversary of the live-saving event. Taylor, as fate would have it, was there getting her tonsils taken out.
She asked him to pop by and the two finally met in person. And they were inseparable ever since.
“Collin left the room and my mom was like, ‘He was flirting with you.’ We have been emotionally inseparable since.â€
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They began dating long-distance while Collin studied at the University of California, Irvine. But then the couple was hit by some bad news: Taylor had cancer, most likely brought on by her body’s negative reaction to her heart transplant.
“Collin took me to every infusion,”Taylor said. “When I was sick and throwing up until to 2 in the morning he was sitting up with me.â€
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Now that the cancer is in remission, the two have plans to marry.
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They decided to share their story to show others the importance of organ donation.
It’s an unlikely love story full of ups and downs, but proof that love can be found where you least expect it and should be cherished when you do.
If you were touched by this unique love story, please share it!
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