Mike Sr. had enjoyed good health for most of his life. After teaching at a local community college for 23 years, he was ready for retirement when life threw an unexpected challenge his way—kidney failure.
“It was slow at first, but eventually, I had to go on peritoneal dialysis,” he said. “I was hooked up to a machine every night while I slept. It was exhausting, both physically and emotionally.”
During one of his routine exams, doctors found a cancerous cyst on his kidney, adding another hurdle to his transplant journey. “They told me I couldn’t get a transplant until I had been cancer-free for a couple of years,” he explained. “I was stuck on dialysis for years. It was hard.”
While Mike Sr. fought through the daily struggles of dialysis, his son, Mike Jr., was determined to help. “In late 2019 I started getting all the tests done at Duke to qualify to be a living donor,” said Mike Jr. “I wanted to help my dad as soon as I could, but our blood types didn’t match. The program at Duke said they can work around that through the paired kidney donation program, which allows a donor and recipient to exchange kidneys with another matched pair, like a four-way swap.”
Thanks to the program, Mike Sr. received his transplant in September 2020.
“When I shook loose from dialysis, I was like a bird let out of the cage,” said Mike Sr. “It gave me a whole new life. You can’t thank somebody enough for their efforts, and of course there were multiple people involved, from the doctors to the donor who I’ve never met.”
Five months later, Mike Jr. donated his kidney to a woman in Ohio.
“It was her third kidney,” Mike Jr. said of his recipient. “She was born with low kidney function, got one as a child, another in her teens, and now mine. She wrote me a handwritten letter explaining her history with kidney issues. It was really nice to hear from her.”
Today, both Mike Sr. and Jr. are passionate about raising awareness for living organ donation.
“So many people die each year waiting for a kidney transplant,” said Mike Sr. “There is currently a bill that is going through congress, House Bill 9275, also known as the End Kidney Deaths Act. This bill would provide a refundable tax credit for non-directed living kidney donations. I’m hoping that everybody will ask their representative to please vote for this, because we can’t change the demand, but we can change the supply.”
When it comes to being a living donor, Mike Jr., now a healthy 46-year-old, has no regrets.
“People thought I might have health problems afterward, but I don’t,” he said. “I live the same life I always have—no major restrictions, just need to drink more water. Watching my dad recover has been great. I just wanted to make sure my dad could live a longer, healthier life. We’ve been to the beach together, played golf, and had family dinners. I don’t know how his health would’ve spiraled without the transplant, but I’m so glad I could help keep him here with us.”
Over 100,000 people in the United States are waiting for a lifesaving transplant. Whether you choose to be a living donor or a donor after death, you can make a difference. Register your decision to be an organ, eye, and tissue donor today at honorbridge.org/registerme
