In 1997, Richard Norris accidentally "blew" his face off with a shot gun. After holding the gun, he put it down on a table and it went off.
His life was never the same. Norris was left with no teeth, no nose, and only part of his tongue. He entirely lost his sense of smell. Though he was lucky to survive the incident, after dozens of surgeries, he was rendered unrecognizable.
Norris began to live a life in the shadows. He travelled exclusively at night to avoid ridicule from strangers.
“I’ve heard all kinds of remarks. A lot of them were really horrible,” Norris said.
Dana Vulin, a burned victim, faced similar bullying for her appearance but proved, just as Norris did, that there is always light in the darkness.
Over a decade later, Norris found hope in another family's loss.
When 21-year-old Joshua Aversano was crossing the street, he was fatally hit by a mini van.
His family decided to donate his face to science.
With only a 50-percent chance of survival, Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez successfully transplanted Joshua's face onto Richard Norris'. See the results of the surgery and the tender moment the two families unite for the first time below.
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In 1997, Richard Norris was in a terrible shooting accident.
The accident left Norris severely disfigured. After dozens of surgeries, it seemed there was no hope to reconstruct Norris' face. He was left suicidal and depressed.
In 2012, Rebekah Aversano's brother, Joshua, died in a fatal car accident. The Aversano family made the selfless decision to donate Joshua's face.
In March 2012, with only a 50-percent chance of survival, the University of Maryland medical center took 36 hours to transplant Joshua's teeth, jaw, tongue muscles, and nerves to Richard Norris' face.
Now, years later, in this incredible moment, Norris reveals his new face to Rebekah. Watch the moment she sees her brother's face on the man's life he changed in the video below.
SHARE if you think this is one incredible story.
