“Family is everything!”

When Lori Orton, adopted at birth, met her biological cousin Joe she couldn’t believe how much they had in common—so much that it would save his life!

As she helped her mom pack to move, Lori Orton came upon a stack of papers she had never seen before.

These are my adoption papers! she realized.

All her life, Lori had known she’d been adopted at birth. Having grown up happy and loved, however, she was never particularly interested in knowing more about where she came from. Sometimes, she even silently prayed: Thank you for giving me this wonderful life.

But now that she had children of her own, Lori had begun to wonder about her medical background. And, studying the names of her birth parents, her heart stirred with curiosity.

Where are you? Who are you? the Pekin, Illinois, single mom and hairstylist wondered.

Found—and lost? Launching

“an online search, Lori learned that, sadly, her birth father had died and her birth mother suffered from dementia. Still, she was able to meet her.

“I’m your daughter,” she said gently. And though Lori wasn’t certain how much she understood or recalled, when she wrapped her arms around the woman who had given her life, her mother replied, “I’m so happy to see you.”

Soon after, Lori’s biological mother died. But having found her, suddenly, Lori had another set of grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, who welcomed her with open arms.

“Come visit! Our grandparents are even in town!” one cousin who lived about an hour away, Joe Russelburg, invited Lori.

From the fi rst time they sat down and began trading tales of their childhoods, Lori and Joe had an instant connection.

“Last time I was fi shing . . . ” Joe commented. “I love fi shing!” Lori enthused. They had the same sense of humor. Even their kids were about the same age and involved in the same activities!

“I’ve never met somebody and felt like I knew him as quickly as I did Joe,” Lori recalls.

In the coming months, as they went swimming and kayaking together with their families, Joe and Lori—just three years apart in age— began to feel more like brother and sister than long-lost cousins.

Then, though he was only in his early 40s, Joe’s health began to decline. A diabetic for two decades, he could barely get off the couch. He even collapsed at work. “He isn’t breathing! There’s no pulse!” somebody screamed. Fortunately, a fi rst responder revived Joe, airlifting him to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria, Illinois. There, tests showed his kidney function was just 4%. He was started on dialysis, but that was only a temporary measure: In order to live, Joe would need a transplant.

“But the wait for a new kidney could be five to eight years,” Joe admitted to Lori.

I just found you. I can’t lose you! And in that moment, she made a decision: “I’m going to get tested to be your donor.”

“She’s my blessing!” Other

family members volunteered to be tested, too. But when Lori’s results came back— after countless blood tests, physical exams and interviews— it was discovered that she was Joe’s perfect match!

Soon after, the cousins were wheeled into surgery, where Lori’s kidney was removed and grafted into Joe’s body— and started working even before surgeons closed his incision.

“How’s Joe?” Lori murmured as she awoke from anesthesia.

That evening, she saw for herself as Joe appeared in her hospital room.

“The kidney cousins!” nurses winked. And though it sounded crazy, considering the procedure they had just endured, Joe blurted, “I feel better already. Better than I have in a long time— because of you. You are such a blessing to me and my family!”

Our family, Lori beamed.

Just three days later, they were both home. And with every passing day, both Lori and Joe regained more strength. Today, they’re both back to work and enjoying sports again. And Lori just did the wedding party’s hair when they celebrated Joe’s daughter’s wedding!

“We were already close, but this brought us so much closer,” marvels Joe, who is excited to soon welcome a new grandchild. “All these memories I look forward to would not be possible without this gift from Lori. I owe her my life.”

“Every time I see Joe, he tells me what a blessing I am,” adds Lori, who is now engaged to be married. “But I’m the blessed one. You don’t get too many chances in life to do something that really makes a difference— never mind to actually save the life of someone in your family. And family is everything!”

Eventually you come to realize that love heals everything, and love is.” is all there GARY ZUKAV