- The family of 7-year-old Nathan Rees, hit by an SUV, will donate his organs.
- Nathan's uncle, Andrew Leavitt, expressed comfort in knowing Nathan's legacy will help others.
- The Cedar City community has shown overwhelming support for Nathan's family during this time.
SALT LAKE CITY — The family of a 7-year-old Cedar City boy who was left in a coma after being struck by an SUV has decided to donate his organs.
Nathan Rees's uncle, Andrew Leavitt, said the decision came after days of hope, prayer and careful consideration.
"They're doing as well as can be expected at this time," Leavitt said. "It's the toughest thing I think a parent can face, is to lose a child in such a tragic way."
Leavitt said Nathan's parents leaned on support from family, friends and doctors at Primary Children's Hospital as they faced the decision.
"It's something that took them a lot of prayer and a lot of time and a lot of consideration," he said. "The great professionals at Primary Children's have been there for them all along the way."
Even in their grief, Leavitt said the family has found comfort in knowing Nathan will continue to help others.
"I think there is a comfort that comes with that. There is a peace," he said. "It means that his life matters. Not that it didn't. It always mattered. But it will continue to matter long after he's gone from this world."
He said that knowledge has helped bring some sense of purpose to an otherwise devastating loss.
"It gives us a lot of comfort to know that he will live on in blessing others," Leavitt said.
For Nathan's family, that legacy reflected who he was.
"He was obsessed with superheroes," Leavitt said. "So the fact that he gets to be a hero for others, he's always helping others and he's going to help others."
Leavitt described Nathan as someone who brought energy and joy wherever he went.
"I think the only word I can use to describe Nathan is he's a light," he said. "He lightened up any room he walked into. He always had a big grin on his face. He always wanted to do goofy and fun things."
Nathan loved talking, especially about his favorite topics.
"He wanted to talk about superheroes and Transformers and all of those fun things that a 7-year-old wants to talk about," Leavitt said. "He's just a fun person to be around. He's going to be missed."
Leavitt said the family has also been overwhelmed by support from the Cedar City community and beyond. Family members have created a GoFundMe.*
"We've had people come out of the woodwork just reaching out to us, caring about them, wanting to help, asking what they could do," he said. "Their community down there in Cedar City is a tremendous community. We've been very blessed by that."
As the family prepared to say goodbye, Leavitt said they had one message for the public.
"This isn't a time for people to be judgmental," he said. "This is a time to come together and love."
