Martinsville man's organ donation after hit-and-run saves lives

September 1, 2019, 24-year-old Aryues Townsend was stuck by a driver in a hit-and-run on Stage Coach Road in Halifax County.

Townsend was flown to Carillion Roanoke Memorial Hospital, where he passed away the next day.

His mother, LaCresha Townsend, has been working to figure out life without him for the last three weeks.

She says Aryues would always text, FaceTime, or call her multiple times a day.

"He was the one that bugs mom, not getting those phone calls, 'Ma,' or not having somebody run upstairs asking, 'Ma what are you doing?' things like that, it's been really hard." said Townsend.

Aryues was an organ donor and after he passed, his liver, kidney, heart, pancreas, and lungs were used to save and improve 7 lives.

"That shows the heart that he had, a big ol' heart that he cared at that age to give his life to someone else." said Townsend.

The person who was driving the car during the hit-and-run is still free and Townsend says that makes moving forward a lot harder.

"If you were out there and saw what happened and you seen her killed my son, I asking you to please write a statement, please, because he has to get justice." said Townsend.