Tied by faith, and now a gift

November 26, 2009

Tied by faith, and now a gift

By DOROTHY SCHNEIDER
dschneider@jconline.com

Not long ago, Greg Buchanan and Gayle Quinn were just acquaintances at church.

They would wave to each other in the foyer of First Assembly of God, on Lafayette's south side, and didn't even know each other's names. Buchanan knew Quinn was a retired school- teacher and called her "teacher lady."

But a few months ago, Quinn learned that Buchanan was in need of a kidney transplant. Another church member had tried to be a donor but wasn't a match.

"I heard a voice in my head, my voice, but I believe it was coming from God," Quinn said. "I heard it say, 'You could do that.' "

On Oct. 2, Quinn did do that. She gave Buchanan a new kidney.

Now friends, the two are recovering well from the transplant surgery and are thankful today for the shared faith that brought them together.

Buchanan is one of the lucky ones to get a new kidney. More than 1,000 patients are waiting for new kidneys in Indiana, and nearly 87,000 people are in need of a kidney transplant nationwide.

Only about 24 percent of the living organ donations that involved kidneys since 1988 were between unrelated donors, according to the International Association of Living Organ Donors Inc.

Transplanted kidneys from living donors have a better chance of surviving than those from deceased donors. And new medicines have helped in transplants, such as this one, where Buchanan and Quinn were only a close match, not a perfect one.

Buchanan spent more than four years on dialysis before he received the kidney transplant. He had dialysis, a medical procedure to remove waste from the blood, three times each week because his kidneys were failing from complications due to high blood pressure.

"I was a little tired," Buchanan said of the long wait. He is 46, an ordained minister and volunteers as a police chaplain.

"I'd seen so many of my friends at the dialysis center who I used to get a hug from every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and they passed away."

Once matched as a donor for Buchanan, Quinn said she never questioned her decision. Her husband and daughter worried about the impact it would have on Quinn's health, but they ultimately supported her.

Quinn, 62, gives credit for her strength through the donation process to God and friends who prayed for success.

"For years (Buchanan's family and friends) have been praying for a donor, even though they didn't know it would be me," she said.

Buchanan said the donation from Quinn is proof that "the racial rift, the tension in this country" is getting better.

"She's a Caucasian female. I'm an African-American male. She didn't have to do this -- I know she said she did (have to), but she didn't," he said. "This is not a small thing. It shows we're all God's people."

Buchanan, a father of four, said his faith has been bolstered by the experience.

"I believed in it all before, but now it's taken on a whole new level," he said. "I have been touched."

Not being able to work was one of the hardest parts of doing dialysis for Buchanan. Before getting sick he worked as a surgery technician and also as a truck driver.

He fully intends to make the most of his new chance at life and wants to pursue his helicopter pilot's license so he can fly a medical response unit.

"I'm responsible for doing the best I can for the rest of this life," Buchanan said.
Additional Facts
What you can do

Learn more about organ donation and how to become a donor at the Indiana Organ Procurement Organization Web site: www.iopo.org

http://www.jconline.com/article/20091126/NEWS/911260324