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Donna Ashlock (Heart Transplant Recipient) Invitation to Encino Home

Date confirmed in “Sun-Sentinel” (“Saturday [March 8, 1986]”) (archived)

“Sun-Sentinel” (March 9, 1986) (archived)

A 14-year-old girl who got a new chance at life with the transplanted heart of her ex-boyfriend and later visited President Reagan arrived in Los Angeles Saturday for a dream meeting with teen idol Michael Jackson. "I still don't believe it," Donna Ashlock said before stepping into Jackson's limousine at Los Angeles International Airport for the trip to the pop star's suburban Encino home. Jackson, who read about the girl's struggle for life, invited the teenager and her mother, Mary, to visit him. Donna said Jackson is her favorite singer. Jackson spokesman Norm Winters said the guests, plus a teenage friend, Jeannie, would see a movie in the pop singer's private theater, have lunch, play some records and visit his backyard zoo. The guests flew in from the Northern California town of Patterson.