Woman tragically loses three sons in nine years

By Emma Dunn via SWNS

A woman lost three sons in nine years - and one donated organs to save five lives.

Michelle Barbuto, 57, lost John, 18, in a fatal motorcycle accident.

Eldest son Vincent, 29, died when he was fatally shot six years after John died, and son Frankie, 28, took his own life, she said.

The mom-of-six has had to grieve half of her children and wanted to have Frankie’s organs donated.

Due to the circumstances of Vincent and John’s deaths, this wasn’t an option, she said.

Frankie’s heart saved the life of a 27-year-old man and his right lung, liver, and kidneys improved the lives of two women and two men between the ages of 23 and 61.

His pancreas and right lung were donated for research.

Michelle found the donation “bittersweet” but said she is looking forward to the moment she can meet the donor recipients - and hear her son's heart again.

Michelle, a nursing home manager, from Weirton, West Virginia, said: “He saved five people.

“It gave me light in the darkness."

“When I got the letter about the donor recipients it was bittersweet.

“My son was gone but five families are celebrating because their loved ones are here.

“The last thing I did was lay my head on Frankie’s heart.

“I can’t wait to hear his heartbeat again.”

Michelle got a call to say her son, John, had been involved in a motorcycle accident in May 2014 – just a week before he was due to graduate.

She said: “I was at work and Vincent kept calling me.

“I said ‘Mom John was in an accident. He’s not breathing,'"

By the time Michelle got to the scene, John had been pronounced dead.

Michelle said: “He had been on his way home.

“We did struggle through it.

“I didn’t know anyone who had lost a child.”

Michelle had to grieve the loss of her son while continuing to raise her other children – Vincent, 29, Megan, 30, Frankie, 28, Maureen, 24, and Michael, 21.

But her world shattered again when she got a call to say her eldest son Vincent had been shot in July 2020.

The investigation for his death is still ongoing.

She said: “I had to restart the grieving process.

“He was so funny, the father figure.

“It was so hard to imagine life without him.

“My world shattered completely.”

Instead of facing her grief, Michelle packed her bags and moved to West Virginia from the home she had been living in for 22 years in Pennsylvania.

She said: “I didn’t give myself time to grieve.”

She continued to support her surviving children – closely looking after her son Frankie who was struggling with his mental health and drug addiction.

She said: “We had Frankie in and out of hospital eight times, starting with the day we buried Vincent.

“It was an ongoing problem, a daily struggle.

“I knew at some point I was going to bury Frankie.

“I just never knew it was going to be so soon.”

Frankie had come to Michelle’s house in March 2023 after he was particularly struggling with his mental health.

It was there that he took his own life on March 15, 2023.

Michelle said: “He was airlifted to the hospital but he had only a bit of brain function.

“I said straight away – ‘How do we donate his organs?’”

Michelle received a letter in April 2023 detailing the ages and genders of the five recipients of Frankie’s organs.

She said: “There are so many emotions through it.

“It’s very rewarding.”

Michelle hopes to meet the donor recipients in a year – and is especially looking forward to meeting the female who received his heart – so she can listen to Frankie’s heart beating again.

Michelle now shares her story online to help voice her grief and help others going through something similar.

She said: “I don’t think about yesterday or tomorrow. You have to focus on today.

“I know I’ll see my sons again.”