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She was a communicant of the Church of Immaculate Conception. she was also a member of the Cambridge Bowling League. She donated her organs for the good of others. Survivors, other than her parents and stepparents, are six stepsisters, five from North Adams, MA and Tara Galvin of Hoosick Falls; her paternal grandmother, Mary Galvin of Hoosick Falls; maternal grandparents Mr. and Mrs. William Stearns of Eagle Bridge; her fiancé Frank Niles of Cambridge; several aunts, uncles and nephews. she was the granddaughter of the late John Galvin who died in 1987
Woman's Gifts Live On In Six Other People By Jan Shields (Record Reporter) Eagle Bridge: At 10 A.M. last March 18, Theresa Galvin was declared dead. But through others, a part of her lives on. Organs from the 21-year old Galvin, the victim of an automobile accident, were used to save the lives of two persons and vastly improve the lives of four others. "It is a comfort to us. It is like she is not really dead - a part of her is living." said her mother , Carol Accetta of Old State Road. "Her name may not be connected to it, but she is living. Someone who doesn't know Terri's name is saying, "Thank you.' " Next to photographs of their daughter, Accetta and her husband Francis, display a letter listing the descriptions of the people who benefited from Galvin's donations.
Her eyes were donated and used for corneal transplants, said her mother. "We are proud of what Terri did. This is something that was her decision , not ours," said her mother. "She always gave, and even in her death, she continued to give. Terri was the type of child who always thought about others, said her mother. But on the day she returned from Maria College, where she was a student, to announce she had signed her organ donor card, her parents thought maybe she had gone to far. "We were against it at first and tried to talk her out of it" said Accetta. "But she said, 'Mom, if I die, why take all my good parts with me when someone else can live with them?' " The promise was made, although her parents never thought it would ever need to be kept. And just two months before the accident that left Galvin brain dead, she reminded them of it. "Maybe it was her destiny to save the lives of those people," said Accetta, a tear glistening in the corner of her eye. Losing a child is never easy. Accetta still feels angry that her only child was robbed of every being married, having children or growing old. "I will never be a mother again, never know what it is like to be a grandmother," she said. "But knowing a part of her continues to live does help." According to Frank Taft, procurement director of the Albany Medical Center Hospital's Regional transplant Program, a federal law now requires hospital staff to talk to the families of all dying patients whose organs could be used. But Accetta urges families to talk about organ donations now. "Don't wait until tragedy strikes. At that time, it all seems so cold. you are thinking, your daughter is dead. You don't want to think about her parts being cut out of her. ."If the decisions is made before, you know you are doing the right thing. Taft recalls the story of a family that agonized over the decision as their son lay dying in a hospital bed. Finally they agreed to donate his organs upon his death. About a month later, Taft received a call. "We did make the right decision." said the parent. "We found a signed donor card in our son's dresser drawer." It is not enough to sign a card, said Taft. "You must make your wishes known to family members. Even though you have signed a donor card or your license, family members must also give their permission before organs can be taken." Information about organ donations and a uniform donor card may be obtained by contacting the Albany Medical Center Regional Transplant Program , 47 New Scotland Avenue, Albany NY 12208.
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