A Kidney For King

A Kidney For King

11/05/2007

Bruce King is a black man from the South Side of Chicago. Jim Abbott is a white, born and bred South Dakotan. But the two men from very different backgrounds are now linked by a kidney.

King never imagined that taking a job as chief diversity officer at the University of South Dakota would save his life or that the school's president would be the one to do it.

...

King was told he needed a new kidney. But when King's two brothers failed to be a match, King faced the awkward task of looking beyond his family.

“How do you call a friend up and say hey, I need a kidney and could you give it to me?" says King.

So King decided to send out an e-mail about his situation.

Abbott says, "I thought to myself. I have two kidneys. I could probably give one."

"Jim was one of the first people to approach me saying I'm kind of interested in this and to let you know I have friends who only function with one kidney," says King.

"My brother in law has one kidney he had kidney cancer. My father in law had a kidney removed. My best friend in college had a kidney removed so I wasn't particularly scared about the process or living a nice long life with just one," says Abbott.

Now Abbot may be King's boss as president of the University, but they say their work relationship never factored into this decision.

"There is a hierarchy in higher education," Angela says. "There is, he's the president do I start coming down to his office once a week, saying hey, where's my kidney?" jokes King. "I think those things are kind of irrelevant don't you?" asks Abbott.

Abbott says it was just the right thing to do.

"For me, I look at Bruce and realize he wasn't doing particularly well. I'd look at Marcene and see his three kids and think this is a terrible thing they might grow up without a father. "

Abbott began preparing to become King's donor. He hired a personal trainer and lost weight. Then he went to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester to get tested and found he was a perfect match. Abbott called King in the middle of a dialysis treatment.

King says, "I'm sitting on the machine and I can't jump up and down, it was surreal and it took a little while for it to sink in."

Abbott says, " I remember you said to me, it's funny because I've been lying here thinking I don't know if I can do this forever. That's fateful. "

As the two prepared for the operation at Mayo, both say they were pretty relaxed about it all.
Abbott says, "The chaplain came in and told us two Ole and Lena jokes." "That's right,” says King.

Once in surgery the results were almost immediate.
King says, "They just clamped the kidney into my body and it immediately responded positively in my body. Turned red, started pumping right away.

“I was sore, the surgeon has to put his hand up there and pull it out and I was thinking it sounds like Bruce got the better of two kidneys," Abbott laughs.

Abbot has been reluctant to do on-camera interviews about the transplant and he's shied away from all the media attention surrounding it.

"I think Jim would have done this for anyone that came to his attention. That's why it's not so touchy feely. I know that he made a decision based on his own experiences and I just feel very fortunate to have been the one that came along at the right time and made the right connection," says King.

Jim Abbot says, "But I think it's nice that Bruce is bi-racial at the moment (laughter)."
"Only when I pee," says King.

Beyond color and beyond rank, these two men will always share a very human connection.

"And he will always have a place in our family history. I was telling my kids that, Jim Abbott will be someone you tell your kids about one day," says King.

Abbot says after hearing about his donation, he received an e-mail from a woman telling him it helped her make up her mind to donate her kidney to a family member.
King says he hopes by sharing his story, more people will check the organ donation box on their driver's licenses.
King was told Abbott's kidney was functioning perfectly in his body at his 100 day checkup following the surgery.

http://www.keloland.com/News/EyeonKELOLAND/NewsDetail6403.cfm?Id=0,62678