For many years, Robert Leibowitz battled chronic kidney failure. To stay alive, he had to undergo dialysis four hours a day, three days a week but unfortunately, his condition did not get any better.
After three years of his gruelling routine, his doctors gave him some bad news. He was told that to survive, he needed a new kidney. Leibowitz was then placed on a donor list.
Not one to wait for a kidney that may or may not come, the brave man decided to take matters into his own hands.
In August 2017, he took a trip to Magic Kingdom theme park and Disney World — with a shirt on his back that said, “In need of a kidney. O positive,” with his phone number at the bottom. He told TODAY:
I thought, ‘If I can get one person to notice this shirt that could be a potential match, it’s worth the $30 investment.
He wore the shirt which was designed by his daughter, Shannon and strolled around the park. Of course, people noticed him and some even took photos. One of this picture-takers was a woman named Roco Sand.
She uploaded Leibowitz’s photo to Facebook and urged her followers to share the post, which they did. In fact, Roco’s post ended up receiving over 91,000 shares.
Leibowitz got a lot of calls, most of whom were just trying to mess with him. But one Indiana man proved to be different. Richie Sully said he was O-positive and he offered to donate his kidney.
After getting tests done to ensure that both men were healthy enough for a transplant, the surgery was scheduled for last week Thursday. Leibowitz received a kidney from his savior and he was incredibly grateful.
I was so happy. I was praying it would be a success. All my kids were there. It was so incredible. My kidney function has become normal.
On how he felt about his rescuers, he said:
Every time I see Richie, I say, ‘Did I say thank you?’ He knows how I feel. He knows how my kids feel. They’ve posted the most amazing love letters to him. I’ll try to thank him for the rest of my life. I can’t put it into words.
This story is incredibly heartwarming and shows what could happen if you put yourself out there.
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