Aliso Viejo Boy to Be Honored on Rose Parade Float

On Dec. 17, the family and friends of Tommy Weiss spent the day decorating a floragraph (floral portrait) of the Aliso Viejo boy to be showcased during the Rose Parade on Jan. 2.

When he was 10 years old, Weiss was in a car accident that left him in a coma. He later died in the hospital. Weiss' mother, Donna Telles, said she was apprehensive about donating her son's heart, according to a Donate Life press release.

"My life changed in an instant and I wasn't ready for the change, let alone the decision on whether to donate Tommy's heart," Telles said.

It was her son's kind and caring nature that influenced the family's final decision to make Weiss an organ donor.

"Tommy would be gratified that his heart recipient, who was 13 years old at the time and is now a Stanford graduate, and his family have become an important part of our family. This is the beauty that arose from a tragedy," said Telles. "Meeting the recipient family changed my life forever. Since then I've attended two U.S. Transplant Games with the mother of Tommy's heart recipient, as well as one in which her son competed."

Weiss' floragraph will be displayed on the Donate Life Rose Parade Float.