Ohio mother says son's body parts were removed as 'anatomical gifts' without her consent after death

Andrea Mauk with her son Damon and husband Edward. (Photo: Andrea Mauk) For Andrea Mauk, the phone call telling her that her 18-year-old son Damon had died was already a moment no mother should ever have to endure. But while she was thousands of miles away in Costa Rica, grieving a son she could not reach, another decision was being made about his body.When Mauk finally returned home, she says she learned that parts of Damon's body had been removed as "anatomical gifts" without her knowledge or consent."I was completely devastated," Mauk, 42, told The New York Post. "I went to the funeral home and couldn't even look at him after they'd taken pieces of his body. They stole my son's eyes. I didn't want to remember Damon like that."A mother left grieving from another countryDamon had only just graduated from high school. He was studying for his real-estate license and, according to his mother, was at a stage in life where his future was beginning to take shape.On June 24, 2023, his car reportedly slid off a rural road in Lucas, Ohio, and crashed into a tree. Mauk was in Costa Rica with her husband and friends when her parents gave her the devastating news."They had to sedate me," she ...