Stranger Gives Kidney to Teenager; Surgery TodayBy Kyle Dlabay and Jay Sorgi
Story Created: Jul 1, 2008
A woman is giving a stranger one of her kidneys, and a second chance, this morning.
Laura Schaper, who's 14, was diagnosed with a very rare disease.
"I have Microscopic Polyangiitis," said Schaper.
"I can't really spell it, but it's an auto-immune disease. It attacked my kidneys and lungs. My lungs are better, but my kidneys are kaput."
More: Johns Hopkins University information on Microscopic Polyangiitis
For that reason, she needs a kidney transplant. No one in her family was a match.
Even though she had never met Laura, Barb Huff stepped forward and, after months of tests, turned out to be a match.
"One of the question swe asked when we were going through this was, well, why do we have two kidneys? I just came up with, 'so we can donate one,' " states Barb.
Huff is the wife of Schaper's pastor.
Barb knows she is doing the right thing and isn't nervous about the prodecure.
"Besides just knowing that this is kind of a God-appointed event for me, I have so many people praying for me."
With a successful transplant, Laura can return to normal life in enough time to begin high school.
Schaper can't wait to get to know the know who's giving her a second chance.
"Barb, I'm thanking you a lot. You're doing the greatest thing in the world. I love you."
More: donatelifewisconsin.org
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http://www.620wtmj.com/news/local/22755464.html
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