Rhonda and I met through “business” but soon realized a deeper connection to one another. I read a story about her decision to become a living kidney donor and called her to tell her about my experience as an organ recipient. She describes her donation as something that will make her smile every day, every time she wakes up in the morning. This is her story about the most exciting thing she has ever accomplished.
Deciding to Save a Life*
Just about one year ago, the day of my kidney donation operation was approaching. My phone kept ringing with friends and family asking me if I was scared, but all I felt was excitement. This is my great story, one I'll get to carry with me the rest of my life.
May 2005, I had just begun selling advertising for Empower Woman Publications, when the owner of a Beauty Salon in Winnetka, IL called looking for advertising information.
I met Shelly Cohen at her salon, Scissors Edge, and we immediately became fast friends. During one of our conversations I mentioned that I had once sold kidney dialysis equipment, whereupon Shelly shared her difficult connection to dialysis. Her husband, Irwin Cohen was on dialysis 3 nights a week, and had been for years because of a disease called Amyloidosis.
Irwin was a former Judo Olympian who also had coached 2 Olympic teams. Shelly and Irwin's 2 sons, Aaron and R.J, were hoping to make the 2008 Olympic Team and Irwin was just hoping to live long enough to see them try. I never realized how lucky I was to have my health.
December 2006, I was watching television, and kept hearing commercials for Organ Donation Awareness Month. I asked my publisher Judy Kaplan to do a story on Irwin and his need for a kidney. Maybe, through our publication, we could help him. Judy interviewed Irwin, and Paul Dooley, founder of a website for living donors, MatchingDonors.com.
January 2007, In the new edition of Suburban Woman North Shore, I was excited to find Judy's article on Irwin. I read it with zest, hopeful that maybe we could help Irwin find a kidney. I mentioned Irwin's story to my son Robbie when he was home from college. Robbie, like me, is the eternal optimist and said, "Mom, why don't you get tested?" It came from left field, but I started to think…
I decided to get tested, but Irwin's disease made a match harder to find. Incredible as it sounds, I was a perfect match! Crazier still, as Irwin and I got to know each other we learned of the possibility that we could be very distant relatives!
(photographed from Left to Right: Rhonda, Irwin and Shelly)
April 20, 2007, Irwin and I entered Northwestern Memorial Hospital at 6 am, by 7 we were prepped for surgery. All I thought about was, how this was the most exciting thing I've ever done. Surgery was 3 hours and flawless. While I was recovering Irwin was getting MY kidney. A few hours later, the doctor told me my kidney was working beautifully, and Irwin was already peeing!! An unforgettable Friday morning, and by Saturday afternoon, I was home. By Monday I was walking around my block, and within 2 weeks was pretty much back to normal.
There are nearly 80,000 people on the waiting list for a kidney. Waiting more than 5 years for a kidney transplant from a deceased donor is common. In 2007, there were 16,624 transplants, 10,587 from deceased donors and over 6,000 from living donors. Yet over 5,000 people died in 2007 waiting for a kidney transplant, and even more who weren't on the waiting list.
Being a living donor was the most incredible and fulfilling experience of my life. Irwin is back to training kids in judo, traveling internationally to watch his sons compete, enjoying being a husband, father, and grandfather. And to top it off, his sons just became United States Champions!! My kidney donation has been and always will be a source of joy, love and inspiration.
Decide to save a life, save a family and your powerful reward will be inner joy and a never-ending smile.
*Empower Woman Publications - May 2008
