ELKHART - Cathy Urish died five years ago, but both her husband and son said she continues to be an inspiration.

Urish, the second American to receive a double-lung transplant, "was a true fighter. She will probably be an inspiration for a lifetime," said son Christopher Urish.

Steve Urish echoed his son's sentiments. "She's an inspiration for everyone," he said.

Father and son work together at Elkhart Fertilizer Service.

Christopher Urish, 25, was six when his mother, a school teacher, took ill from a genetic lung disorder called alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency.

She received the lungs of a 26-year-old Canadian woman at Toronto General Hospital in 1987, and Cathy Urish lived to be 50.

"It gave her more time to be with me," Christopher Urish said, adding those extra years helped cement his character. Christopher Urish was 19 and a freshman at Illinois State University when his mother died.

His sister, Katie, now 28, had just graduated from the University of Illinois in Urbana. She now lives in California.

Wherever family members live, organ donation is important to them, said Christopher Urish. He and other family members have indicated their preference to be organ donors on their driver's licenses, he said.

Steve Urish said being an organ donor is important because "a lot are waiting for donor organs."

His wife helped "break the trail" for others, Steve Urish said, adding the procedure became available in the United States shortly after Urish got her transplant.

How to help

For information about organ donation, visit lifegoeson.com.