By Gage’s kidney donor, Jody.
Kidney donation – what an experience, even after five years! Each day I am thankful that Gage’s body accepts my kidney as his own. I am amazed at how much he’s grown and how healthy he is, compared to that sick little boy with sad angry eyes. And I am thankful for the medical technology, the doctors, and the support teams that made our donation/transplant possible.
Speaking of the medical team, I am reminded about two conversations I had with my transplant surgeon, Dr. Newell. In my pre-op consultation, I remarked that I was grateful for his work. He replied, “I have the best job. All my patients are living donors – people who were giving of themselves so others could live.” What a kind and humble man Dr. Newell is.
The other conversation I had with Dr. Newell was three days before our transplant date. My grandmother had passed away unexpectedly and her funeral was to be on T day. Distraught, I called what I thought was Dr. Newell’s answering service to talk about the possibility of moving the surgery date. I didn’t want to jeopardize the transplant but I also wanted to be with my family. Dr. Newell answered on the first ring and told me that he was in California and would look at the surgery calendar when he was back in Atlanta and we’d talk about the options. As I hung up the phone, I realized that Dr. Newell had given me his personal cell phone number (not the answering service) and that he was talking to me at 4:30 in the morning, since he was on Pacific time.
I am so thankful for my kind and skillful surgeon, Dr. Newell, who made my organ donation possible.
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