Moment mum touches cheek of man who received her dead husband’s face in transplant
The touching photos show the moment Lilly Ross, 21, met Andy Sandness, who was the recipient of a face transplant following the death of her
husband Calen 'Rudy' Ross
"CLUTCHING my toddler’s hand, I felt so nervous as the stranger walked into the room.
We’d never met before, but his face felt so familiar to me, I couldn’t help but reach out and touch his skin. It was no surprise really, as it belonged to my dead husband.
"Rudy and I met when we were teenagers at high school.
"At 18, he was a year older than me, but we quickly fell in love.
"He was a giant of a man, outgoing and funny, but also really caring and kind.
"I had no clue that some days he was overwhelmed with depression.
I had no clue that some days he was overwhelmed with depression
"While my friends were going off to university, Rudy and I got married in church in Windom in October 2015.
"At 18 and 19, we may have seemed young, but we were serious about each other and wanted a family more than anything.
"Within a month of our wedding I was pregnant, and as the weeks went by we were so happy.
"But there were times Rudy would get down.
"He worked in construction and would quit jobs on a whim, then sit around at home for days watching TV.