The murder of barber Jhonatan Andrés Trujillo in the Álamos Norte area of Neiva shocked the town. In the midst of pain, his father, Fernando Trujillo, decided to donate his deceased son’s organs, a decision they discussed, but did not expect to live. Today he has the opportunity to meet the recipients of the organs and he says that “Jonathan will live longer.”
By: Brian Smith Sanchez
Brayan.sanchez@lanación.com.co
The murder of the young barber Jonathan Andrés Trujillo Valencia in the Alamor Norte area of Neiva shocked the city. “What happened to my son, I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. As I share this, I want you to know that forgiveness, reconciliation and love for people come first. “I never thought this would happen to me and my family,” said Fernando Trujillo, the father of the young barber, sad and heartbroken LA NACIÓN.
The hitman shot, in cold blood, in front of his father and his girlfriend, an event that left a family in mourning and left an indelible mark on August 26, a date that Fernando Trujillo will never forget. “My son was at the pharmacy. I arrived that night to get my hair cut. Of course, we had talked to each other on Sunday; We always went out on Sundays. That Sunday I was not able to be with him. So, on Monday I went to get my hair cut. It was about 7:40 at night. We had talked about how I was going to buy a car the other week and that there was a football game I was going to play that night. Suddenly, a man came rushing in and, about five feet away from us, lifted his shirt, took out a handgun, pointed it directly at him and fired twice in front of me and his lover.”
Two days after the tragic event, LA NACIÓN interviewed Fernando in front of the Neiva University Hospital. In the middle of an atmosphere of helplessness, with a deep look and a broken heart, he announced the decision to donate his son’s organs. “What was done was an act of love, true love for people,” he said, seeking peace in a move that, although painful for him, offered a light of hope to others.
Arles Francisco Ijaji Chito, Fernando Trujillo and Ruth Parra Varón, also the main characters of this story.
A life changing decision
“One day, my son and I had talked about donating an organ, but I never thought that this would happen to us,” he said. Because of the severity of the wounds inflicted by the attacker, Jonathan had no hope. Doctors said he was brain dead. His family, Catholic and deeply religious, followed him in the hope that his young spirit would leave a legacy. Thus, five people, including Ruth Parra Varón, were given a new chance at life.
“Being on hemodialysis is very difficult because life changes a lot, you have to be in the clinic every other day going through that machine. Things some of us don’t like. And nothing comes back in your skin, and just as it comes back to us, that’s how we feel: very poor quality of life on hemodialysis,” said Ruth.
The news came to Ruth, a 43-year-old woman from Armero, Guayabal, Tolima, with surprise. One morning, he received a message on WhatsApp that changed everything. With hope intact and few resources, he set off on the road to Neiva.
“We get up and I always turn on cell phone data. They sent me a message on WhatsApp welcoming me from Neiva hospital… Half an hour later my cell phone rang and it was the doctor. He told me that a donor had come out. I felt happy, there were mixed feelings because the donor was gone, but we were also in a difficult economic situation. But I told the doctor that we were leaving, and she told me that we would arrive in six hours. And I said yes, trusting in God, and with my husband we left. “We grabbed two changes of clothes and started.”
Ruth’s husband becomes the narrator of her suffering, painfully recounting the dark days that have marked her life. He remembers how he had to retire to sleep on the floor and have many other problems during the crisis of the illness.
“It was a very big change. When all that happened, I was working in a company. They gave me permission twice, but the third time when we went to San Ignacio in Bogotá for treatment, when I came back, I worked two days. On the third day they took me off work. They told me: ‘You can’t work because you keep traveling and you are of no use to the company.’ The first three months were very hard; She slept on the floor outside the clinic while they were doing dialysis on her. We went in at nine at night and left at two in the morning. Many times I had a problem with carrying her, I had to come on the motorcycle, take her with her and put her on the motorcycle at that time. We were happy while she finished the hemodialysis,” said José Ayala, Ruth Parra’s husband.
After two and a half years of hard fighting for his health, he finally found the organ he wanted: a kidney. With great gratitude, and as if every word was a sign of the renewed hope, and the second chance he got, he thanked him.
“After the transplant I felt very happy to receive this blessing. I thank the family who donated this organ because, the truth is, my life changed a lot. I have taken a break from dialysis, it is a big break and I feel happy and grateful. In my heart there is joy, there is a desire to live. It makes me happy because I’m fine. Apart from the surgical process, I feel happy and grateful to God for this opportunity to be able to live a normal life again,” said a recipient of the organ.
Jhonatan Andrés Trujillo, the barber who was murdered in Alamos Norte de Neiva.
mourning process
For Fernando, the grieving process has been a painful journey. Every Sunday, with a heavy heart, he visits his son’s grave, carrying with him a store of memories and wishes. The echo of that tragedy on August 26 appears in his mind, and with a deep sigh, he wishes that time would take away that pain.
“I don’t sleep with the light on anymore because the nights are very sad. I think about it, at the time this happened. I think a lot about how nice we were the last day, about what we were talking about, his projects. It touched me so much that I carry all these memories in my heart. It is very sad. We can’t stand these times. I know there is mourning, mourning all these days, but I want it to pass quickly because we are very, very bad emotionally,” said Fernando Trujillo.
Through this process, Fernando has immersed himself in organ donation research. With every new information he finds, his heart fills with a mixture of sadness and hope. Understand that many people who suffer, who live in uncertainty, are waiting for the opportunity to receive an organ that will allow them to start again.
“I have spoken to people about this matter. I have searched and asked. There are people who suffer a lot, people who suffer from the disease they have and who hope that one day they will have the opportunity to receive an organ so that their lives will change. They are families, they are fathers, mothers, children and, to a large extent, when they are parents, who is the main head of a household, who is the breadwinner of the household. It’s very painful to see someone who needs an organ to go on with their family,” said Fernando.
An impossible request
A request that seemed almost impossible, but that Fernando wished for with everyone, was to meet the people who received an organ from his son. I thought of their faces, their stories and the new life they were now leading as a result of that decision.
“I told the doctor if he could make a big request of us, that is to meet one of the people who received an organ from Eoin. They asked me why and I said that I wanted to meet them to kiss them, to feel them, and to know that my son is in that body. So, they told me that it was not, that it could not, that it was impossible and that you could never meet people. But my ‘God’ is too big. After so many prayers and so many tears, there was an escape and it was known who they were, and they also wanted to meet us personally, especially me, to thank us,” said Fernando.
He met Francisco
Finally, Don Fernando saw his long awaited wish come true. Not only did he get to meet Ruth, but he crossed paths with Arles Francisco Ijaji Chito, a farmer from Pitalito, Huila. For six years, Arles had a constant struggle, dealing with the rigors of dialysis and other medical procedures, while he was forced to work to support his family. But everything changed with the news of the transplant and that a hook was available; That news enlightened his life, changing his state of mind, his way of thinking and his way of life.
“And the people I met are very humble people, and I feel very good, thank God for meeting them. “I have met two people who have received the kidney, each one, and they are very humble people who need us, me and people with a good heart,” said Fernando.
Without a doubt, a story that moves deeply. Don Fernando Trujillo would have liked the situation to be different, but life, with its relentless course, brought unexpected challenges and learning.
“At this time we went to deliver Jonathan to the surgery room, I said a prayer there and I asked the Lord that my son would move even a finger. But no, it wasn’t possible. My son was completely brain dead. The only thing I could say to the Lord is to thank you, beautiful father, for giving me 33 years of happiness with him. And since I don’t have him anymore, I will have the other people, whom I know I will know all of them and I am going to give them the same love and respect that I gave to my son. That’s what I want,” said Fernando.
