‘The right thing to do’ Ansley man to donate kidney to Mason City youth
Andy Gibbons of Ansley lost a brother to cancer when he was only 14 so the thought of a community member losing a child weighed heavy on his heart when he saw Donna Hoblyn-Bittner’s Facebook post seeking a kidney donor for her 16-year old son, Jacob. Andy just knew it was the “right thing to do.”
Jacob was born with urinary reflux. He started a series of surgeries to address the problem when he was only 4. With one kidney that has only been functioning at 12.5% since then, Jacob’s other kidney was starting to wear out. Doctors were hoping he could get through his growth spurt before a transplant would be necessary.
Donna reports that Jacob grew 6.5” in the past 18 months and now the kidney just can’t keep up so his nephrologist determined a transplant is necessary.
Within 36 hours of her Facebook post, eight people had reached out to Hoblyn-Bittner in Mason City as possible donors. When the screening process was finished and subsequent testing was completed in Omaha, Andy was a perfect match.
“If I can help somebody, I usually do,” Gibbons said. But this is so much more than just putting in fences or helping with chores. This is giving up a body part and a good chunk of income while he recovers.
Andy said he believes that if everybody would make a little sacrifice, even just waving at a stranger on the road, the world would be a better place. His wife, Cassandra, and children, Joey, Addie and Riley are all in support of his generous decision.
Jacob and Andy will head to Omaha on May 23 for two days of surgery preparation. The transplant surgery, which typically
takes about three and a half hours, will take place May 25.
If all goes as planned, Andy should be home about May 29 but will have a minimum of two weeks of complete rest. Cassandra will take off work to care for him during that time. He hopes to be sitting on a bucket supervising his 15-year old son, Joey, at the job site for Gibbons Electric for about four weeks following that initial down time.
Jacob will stay in the ICU for 24 hours after surgery and will be in the hospital for 7-10 days. Donna and Jacob will stay in the Omaha area for six weeks so he can be monitored and be close in the event that immediate medical care is necessary.
There are currently 300 Nebraskans awaiting an organ donor and 103, 889 people in the United States, according to the DHHS of Nebraska. Of those, 85% need a kidney. Twenty people per day die in this country waiting for an organ donation.
In 2021, there were 41,000 transplant surgeries nationwide. In 2022, there were 600 donated organs in Nebraska.
Organ donation can be as simple as checking a box on your driver’s license so that your organs may be harvested upon death. Living donors are also needed as are donations of fetal membranes, blood and bone marrow.
For more information on donating to save a life, check out liveonnebraska.org.
As in so many small, rural communities in Nebraska, Mason City and all of central Nebraska have rallied around Jacob to provide support for both he and Andy and their families.
Kevin and Jill Racicky have organized a benefit to help with medical expenses for both families on Sunday May 21 from 11:00-2:00 at the Community Center in Mason City. A free-will donation will get you an amazing lunch and an opportunity to bid on many silent auction items that have been donated by area businesses, friends and supporters. Items include power tools, meat boxes, restaurant certificates, products for the home, a pool party and much more.
If you are unable to attend but would like to make a donation, accounts have been set up at the Town and Country Bank in Litchfield 308-446-2522 and Flatwater Bank in Ansley 308-935-1700. For other donations, contact Kevin Racicky at 308-212-0401 or Jill Racicky at 308-2120400.
As communities, families, friends, teammates and even strangers rally around Jacob and Andy in this life-changing event, they ask that each of us look around and see what we can do to make someone else’s life a little better - whether it’s organ donation or fixing lunch for a person stuck in their home. We can all do our part and help move the culture of our world in the right direction.