音频下载[点击右键另存为]
The kindness of strangers
Last year, we reported on a new approach to lifesaving kidney donations, a kind of pay-it-forward idea, pairing those in need with those willing to be donors for people they've never met. From that first selfless gift, many are now enjoying a new chance of life. As ABC’s Barbara Pinto reports all involved have gathered for the first time.
When we last saw Angela Hecmin and Ron Bunnell, they were headed into surgery. Ron was giving Ange, a total stranger, one of his kidneys. Now 15 months later…
“I feel fantastic; he gave me a new life.”
“He gave me my daughter back, for a long time to come.”
In return, Ange’s mother then gave one of her kidneys to a woman she’d never met (“Thank you so much.”) until this past weekend.
The concept is called paired donation and allows anyone who needs a lifesaving kidney-transplant to get one as long as they find a willing donor. A computer program finds the best possible match.
It started with Matt Jones, a father of five from Michigan who decided to give a stranger an incredible gift.
“I decide, you know, I’ve got two, only need the one, if somebody else can have it and live a better life then it's a success.”
Mat gave his kidney to Barbe Bunnell, whose husband Ron was not a good match for her. In turn, Ron gave his kidney to Ange, whose mother Laurie was not a sui