Teacher Donates Kidney To Student

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Teacher Donates Kidney To Student
Ailment Slowly Weakened Teen's Kidneys
Reported By Cynthia Williams

POSTED: 5:19 pm CDT October 13, 2008
UPDATED: 7:02 pm CDT October 13, 2008
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- A Nashville teacher is being praised after he donated one of his kidneys to help an ailing student.

Video: Teacher Donates Kidney To Student

William Sharfner, 14, was in desperate need of a kidney until his after-school teacher, Mike Williams, came to the rescue.

Williams and Sharfner couldn't be more different. Williams is 35 years old, married and the father of three girls, while Sharfner is a high school student.

However, the two share an unbreakable bond after the kidney transplant.

Sharfner was born with an ailment that slowly weakened his kidneys. About a year ago, he started to have kidney failure, was living on dialysis and running out of options for a donor.

No one knew his teacher at the Youth Life Learning Center was secretly undergoing testing to see if he was a match for his student. Through the testing, he found out he was a positive match.

Last month, the teacher gave his student a kidney, and Sharfner is now energetic, healthy and back to doing normal activities that kids his age do.

"Right now, he's like the closest friend you could ever have," said Sharfner.

Doctors said although the teen's prognosis is good, it will still be awhile before Sharfner is able to return to his regular classes because he is still prone to infections.

http://www.wsmv.com/health/17706472/detail.html#-