Hamilton woman to give a kidney to stranger — ‘We’re all connected’
When Christi Nolan read the post on Facebook, she knew instantly what she had to do.
Jennen Johnson of Toronto was looking for a kidney donor to save her life. The waiting list for a kidney was eight years, Johnson said, but she was only expected to survive another four years without a transplant.
With few options, Johnson decided to run an ad in a Toronto magazine seeking a donor, which soon made its way to social media.
Nolan, a 37-year-old yoga instructor who lives on the Hamilton Mountain, didn’t know Johnson and had never met her but that didn’t matter.
“I just knew right away it was something I wanted to do and to see if I could be of any help,” Nolan said.
“I believe we’re all brothers and sisters, we’re all connected in this world,” said Nolan. “Why not? I’m able to do it. I’m healthy, I’m in good shape so far.
“It’s a big deal, I understand that, but for me, she needs it,” Nolan added.
“It’s crazy to think that she’s going to die waiting for a kidney when I’m able to give it.”
Now she’s the leading candidate to donate one of her kidneys to Johnson, an incredibly grateful 42year-old mother.
“There aren’t words to describe what Christi is going to do for me,” said Johnson, who suffers from lupus, an auto-immune disorder that has left her with two damaged kidneys.
“I truly believe she’s my angel,” said Johnson, who has a 12-year-old daughter named Tatianna. “She’s
looking after both me and my daughter.”
Nolan has already passed the first couple of stages in the process and Monday, she’ll be at Toronto General Hospital for tissue-typing tests and some MRI scans. So far, she’s a match.
The next stage will be a meeting with the surgeon to discuss more of the details.
Nolan said she’s not feeling any fear yet but that might set in, she said, once a surgery time is booked.
“But for me it’s not the fear of losing an organ and living without my kidney, it’s really the procedure itself and the recovery — what anyone would fear when they’re going in for major surgery,” said Nolan.
Johnson said she’s known since she was diagnosed with lupus more than a decade ago that there was a possibility she would end up with damaged kidneys, both because of the effects of the disease and the medication used to treat it.
Now she needs dialysis to cleanse her blood and she feared that time was going to run out on her.
“These odds aren’t working in my favour,” Johnson said. “I don’t want to wait until I’m knocking on death’s door.
“I don’t want to crack open the champagne just yet but so far, Christi is just hitting it out of the park,” Johnson added.
“I’m keeping my fingers crossed that she passes the test and ultimately saves my life.”
Johnson said she’s been overwhelmed with the responses she received from people across Canada and even some from the U.S.
“There are so many good people out there,” Johnson said.
“They didn’t know who I was and they didn’t care, they didn’t care what I looked like.
“All they knew was what they read in that ad, they knew I was a mom,” she added
“That’s all that mattered to them.”
Nolan said her decision to step forward may have been a bit easier because she’s not married and doesn’t have children. Her family has also been incredibly supportive, she added.
And if she is the successful donor, the Hamilton woman said she doesn’t feel like she’ll be losing a part of herself.
“If anything, I’m gaining,” Nolan said.
“I’ve already been contacted by people from across Canada who have given organs to family members and people who have lost loved ones to kidney failure.
“It’s really been amazing to see people connecting with the story.”