Stranger Comes To Aid Of Local Woman In Need Of Kidney Transplant
FRANKLIN PARK (KDKA) -- Jacquie Uhler placed an ad hoping for a miracle.
And that's exactly what she got.
Eight months ago, her Zumba class at the Franklin Park YMCA had no idea of the pain she endured.
Uhler, an Argentina native, was 15-years-old when she came to Pittsburgh for the first of her two liver transplants.
But anti-rejection drugs led to kidney failure.
The YMCA began posting notices pleading for a donor for Uhler.
"If I wasn't able to get the transplant I would definitely have to be on dialysis. It just changes your life completely and your body deteriorates rapidly," Uhler says.
Uhler's friend was a match, but then doctors found a lesion on her kidney making her ineligible.
"She was trying to do me a favor," Uhler says of her friend.
For Uhler and her family, this news was devastating.
But that's when her fortunes changed.
Attorney Richard Walters hosts Argentine Dance classes. He met Uhler's sister and discovered the woman's desperate need for a new kidney.
On Oct, 30, Walters will be donating a kidney to someone he barely knows.
Uhler's surgery will take place on the anniversary of her mother's death.
"The day will be full of emotions, and I know she is going to be with me every step of the way," Uhler says.
Walters says that the opportunity for him to help Uhler is an honor and a privilege.
"I'm going to wake up with one less kidney, and Jacquie is going to wake up with a good kidney in her body that's going to function another 34 years," Walters says.
"He's a wonderful person. I will never be able to repay him for what he's doing," Uhler says.
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