A 21-year-old La Mesa man who died in a crash in 2022 will be posthumously honored in the 2025 Rose Parade for providing new life to several people through organ donation.
One of those recipients was Harley Duffer, who was gifted his third heart transplant thanks to Peyton Nurse, a 21-year-old Helix High School graduate who died when his car slammed into a traffic signal pole on Broadway and Fletcher Parkway in El Cajon, in 2022.
“It just means so much to get to continue living,” said Duffer.
Peyton Nurse will be honored on New Year's Day during the Rose Parade in Pasadena on the "One Legacy Donate Life Float."
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Peyton Nurse's mother, Lesley, is among the family and friends who made a floragraph picture of her son, which will be on the float.
“My favorite part of this is his smile, because that was really one of the most favorite things I loved about Peyton," Lesley Nurse said.
Years earlier, in a testament to his compassion for others, his mother says, Peyton Nurse decided to sign up as an organ donor when he first got his license for the first time.
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“We talked about what that meant or could mean and he said, 'Absolutely, you know, if I can help someone else, that's what I want to do,'" said his mom.
Peyton Nurse has saved three lives, including Duffer's.
“No one wants to lose a loved one, right? Certainly, no one wants to lose a child. So, from that perspective, the good that comes out of tragedy is really what that represents to us," said Peyton’s father, Nigel Nurse.
Duffer not only received Peyton’s heart, but also his kidney. He remembers his cardiologist warning him about the process.
“This will be the hardest thing you've ever done. Walk through hell and back again, " recalls Duffer.
To show his gratitude, Duffer penned a letter to the Nurse family. The Nurse family said it was unknowingly written on Peyton’s March 25th birthday but delivered three months later on his dad's birthday.
“I feel my son always reaches out to me in some way," said Nigel Nurse.
“Just seeing how happy they were that I was able to continue living has given me a new purpose,” said Duffer.
Since that day, the Nurses and Harley have become extended family -- bound together by one heart.
And Duffy welcomed a little girl to the family with a special homage to the man who saved his life; her name is Peyton.
In a video, you can see young Peyton hugging a picture of the man she’s named after -- thankful he was able to give her father the gift of life.
In addition to finding matches for Peyton’s heart, lungs and kidneys, other organs and tissue were donated for research.
You'll be able to see the tribute to Peyton on the Donate Life Float during the Rose Parade on January 1st.
