An Airdrie family is celebrating a medical miracle after a two-year-old boy received a life-saving liver transplant from a family friend, ending a months-long search for a donor and giving the toddler a chance at a healthy future.Little Colby Crofts marked his second birthday in January with something few toddlers ever experience — a successful liver transplant that has transformed his fragile early life into one of recovery and stability.Colby was born with , a rare genetic disorder that prevents proper development of bile ducts in the liver, leading to toxic bile buildup and serious complications. .Over the course of his short life, he has endured repeated hospital stays, infections, acute pancreatitis, and both kidney and liver failure.By 18 months old, doctors at the Alberta Children’s Hospital placed him on a transplant waiting list for a deceased donor liver. But his medical team advised his parents that a living donor offered the best chance of survival.“That was something that was brought up through the transplant team was that living organ donation was an option, if we knew somebody or could find somebody who would be a match for Colby,” said his mother, Stephanie Crofts..That match ultimately came from an unexpected source: family friend Amy Hasson, who already understood the risks and process involved in living organ donation after witnessing her own mother donate a kidney years earlier.When she learned Colby needed a transplant, Hasson stepped forward.“I prayed about it and I got tested, and when I found out I was a match, I just felt this overwhelming peace,” she said..In September 2025, surgeons at the University of Alberta Hospital performed a complex split procedure, with one surgical team removing a portion of Hasson’s liver while another simultaneously transplanted it into Colby. Both operations were completed successfully.Because the liver is one of the few organs capable of regeneration, both donor and recipient are now recovering well..Since the surgery, Colby has shown significant improvement and is described by his family as thriving after years of severe illness.For his mother, the gratitude is simple but overwhelming.“I think the only thing you can say is ‘thank you’,” Stephanie said. “I’ve said it time and time again, I’ll say it for the rest of my life.”
