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2 Slain Kids Save 12 Lives

Organs donated from victims of NC mom's rampage

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Nov 25, 2011 4:43 AM CST

(Newser) – Donated organs from two children killed in a North Carolina mom's murder-suicide rampage have given life to a dozen others. Mary Ann Holder killed both her sons, one of their girlfriends, and a niece she was raising before turning the gun on herself last week. A spokesman for Carolina Donor Services says organs from her 14-year-old son saved five lives, and organs from her 8-year-old niece saved seven.

Another victim, her nephew, is on life support, and family members say it will be switched off when organ recipients are found. "Like the saying goes, out of tragedy comes something," a sheriff's office spokesman tells ABC. "It's just so sad that so many lives had to be taken for someone else to survive. But it is a blessing." Nationwide, almost 2,000 children are on waiting lists for life-saving organs.

A memorial stands in front of the house where Holder shot one of her sons, his girlfriend, and a niece and nephew on the weekend. She shot another son in her car before killing herself. (AP Photo/News & Record, Nelson Kepley)

Students console each other over the loss of their friends during a prayer meeting held at Pleasant Garden First Baptist Church in Pleasant Garden, N.C. (AP Photo/News & Record, Jerry Wolford)

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2 Slain Kids Save 12 Lives

Organs donated from victims of NC mom's rampage

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