Cami Loritz of Denmark, Wisconsin had always wanted to be a nurse because she wanted to use her intelligence to help the sick and the needy. She had no idea that she would end up going above and beyond to save the life of one boy by doing something that was not in her job description.

As a nurse at Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee, Cami typically cares for the most critically ill patients in the facility. Just when she thought she’d seen it all, however, a little boy was brought in with liver failure in the spring of 2019, causing Cami’s heart to break.

Brayden Auten had been a totally healthy and normal 8 year-old boy until his mother Ruth Auten was called by the school nurse, who said he was not feeling well. When Brayden’s family brought him to the hospital, they were stunned to learn that an aggressive virus was attacking his liver.

Things went downhill fast for Brayden, and his family was told that he would need a liver transplant to survive.

“It was the Sunday after we got there, they finally looked at us, they’re like, ‘We’re bypassing everything. He’s going on the list tonight,’” said Brayden’s father James, with Ruth adding, “Started talking liver transplant, and we just bawled our eyes out. We didn’t think it was going to get that far.”

The desperate parents took to Facebook to see if they could find a donor for their son.

“Well this is the last post I wanted to make but Brayden’s liver is failing,” James wrote in the post. “We need your prayers and miracle for healing and to find him a liver soon. I appreciate everyone’s love and support through this.”

While caring for Brayden in the hospital, Cami watched his family scrambling to find him a liver transplant. After weeks of no success, Brayden’s health began declining rapidly. Realizing that she needed to do something, Cami decided to get tested herself to see if she was a match for Brayden.

Much to her surprise, Cami learned that she was indeed a match for Brayden! Without hesitating, Cami immediately began making preparations to give Brayden a portion of her liver. His family could not have been more grateful to her!

“So today we had the wonderful opportunity to meet Braydens miracle, the angel that gave you life,” James wrote on Facebook. “She has given up time and went through pain to make sure that my son has a chance to walk by my side again and be able to live and thrive like a regular 7-year-old boy. So thank you Cami Loritz I will never be able to repay the gift that you have given my son and all of us!”

The surgery ended up being a huge success for both Brayden and Cami.

Weeks later, they reunited to take part in a celebratory photoshoot together. Together, Cami and Brayden are now trying to encourage others to look into giving an organ donation.

“This post comes from such a FULL heart,” Cami wrote in a Facebook post. “I cannot say thank you enough for all the kind words, genuine thoughts and intentional prayers Brayden and I have received over the last few months. Know that they have been whole heartedly appreciated and were our go to ‘pick me ups’ during the rough days of recovery.”

“We can’t thank her enough. She’s a true miracle. We consider her one of us, one of our family,” Ruth added.

Find out more about this in the video below!