Worksop man has 'organ donor' tattooed on his chest to follow in wife's footsteps

A 74-year-old man has tattooed '˜organ donor' on his chest to make sure he can follow his wife's footsteps and save lives after he dies.
Peter with his tattoo and Anne.Peter with his tattoo and Anne.
Peter with his tattoo and Anne.

Peter Brammer of Cartwright Street, Shireoaks, wanted to make sure his organs saved lives after he had to tell hospital staff that his wife of 40-years was a organ donor when she died in September 2002.

Anne Brammer died in Bassetlaw District General Hospital, on Kilton Hill, Worksop, of a undiagnosed brain tumour when she was 55-years-old.

Mr Brammer said that after her funeral he received a letter from Sheffield Teaching Hospitals.

He said: “I received a wonderful letter telling me how many lives her organs had saved, it has been a great comfort to me.”

Among those Mrs Brammer helped included a man in his 40s and a woman in her 40s, aswell as skin and bone which whent towards research.

Mr and Mrs Brammer met during a blind date at the Majestic Theatre, on Coronation Street, Retford.

He later had a plaque dedicated to Mrs Brammer on a seat roughly where they sat during their first date.

Mr Brammer who wrote to your Guardian after reading one of our stories ‘Call for over-50s to join organ donation.’

He said he would let his wife’s organs be donated again as they saved lives.

He said: “It is defiantly without hesitation a good idea - what is the point of a buried or burnt organ, let it do some good and keep people alive.

“How would you feel if you needed an organ and no one donated.”

The most recent figures released by the NHS state that three people a day die in the UK in need of an organ transplant.

A spokesman from the NHS said: “Almost 7,000 patients currently on the UK’s transplant waiting list, 30 percent have been waiting more than two years.

“Almost 49,000 people in the UK have endured the wait for an organ transplant in the last 10 years and over 6,000, including 270 children, have died before receiving the transplant they desperately needed.”

Mr Brammer who already had Anne’s name tattooed on his wrist decided to make his pledge to donate signed with permanent ink while he was on a trip to Skegness in June.

The former Retford firemen said: “I wanted to make sure my organs were donated to help people.

“I think it’s a good idea to get ‘organ donor’ tattooed on you. I am trying to get a few more people to do it.”

Mr Brammer who also worked as a medical officer for the coal board for 25-years and a porter at Bassetlaw Hospital said he use to see the way organ donations can help.

He said: “I am proud of my chest- they can have everything when I am dead, I’m not bothered, it saves lives.”