About Laura

Laura was a college junior in 1992 when she was diagnosed with leukemia.  Five years later she was declared “cured” but in 1998 her breathing became labored. She learned that her lungs had been irreversibly damaged, possibly by chemotherapy. Her only option was a lung transplant.

In 2003 Laura underwent successful transplant surgery at Stanford University Medical Center. After three months of recuperation there, she returned to Arizona to live a very active life. As all transplant patients must, she lived on a strict regimen of anti-rejections drugs that reduced her body’s natural ability to fight disease. In 2005 she contracted a virus which she fought with all her considerable courage and determination, but could not overcome.

Laura’s Legacy

Through her years of illness, Laura‘s strength, grace and resilient spirit never wavered.  She enjoyed every day to the fullest and without complaint. Her life was filled with purpose and passion; she was incredibly brave in the face of adversity; and she invariably deflected people’s concerns about her by engaging in a conversation about them.  Most importantly, she cherished her family and friends, and generously shared with them her most precious assets – her time and her love.  She was an inspiration to all those whose lives she touched.

Laura Hart Major Burdick 1972 – 2005