When the Rev. Jason Niemi got up to give the eulogy for his old college friend Brad Einck last month at United Lutheran Church in Red Wing, Minn., he was as conflicted as he had ever been.
The man he had helped through pledge week at Gustavus Adolphus College 20 years before had attempted suicide, then died later of a stroke. He was 42. It was a terrible tragedy for his family and friends.
If not for Einck's death, however, it is unlikely that Niemi's brother Ted would be alive today.
Einck had signed up to be an organ donor, something he and his wife, Kim, an emergency room nurse in Red Wing, had discussed many times. "Brad asked me if I had signed up to be a donor on my driver's license shortly after we met," said Kim Einck. "He was always concerned about giving back to people."
"Brad was quite the guy," she said. "He was not your typical candidate for someone who would commit suicide. He always made people happy, and he always had a smile on his face."
Brad was a massage therapist. He played guitar and loved to sing karaoke, with a particular fondness for the Doors, the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan. He also was quick to do good deeds for others. That included organ donation.
He and Kim had discussed end-of-life matters, but the issue is a lot easier in the abstract than in reality.
"When it comes down to your husband, who is 42 and perfectly healthy, it's a very difficult thing to decide," Kim said. "When it became clear that the best we could hope for is to keep him alive in a vegetative state, well that was something we promised we would never do. So his vital organs were all good and his soul was already gone. We believe that. To me, it was a sign from Brad and God."
