Friendship key to survival for transplant patient

DECATUR, Ind. (WANE) - A Decatur man continues to recover nearly two months after what nurses are calling a remarkable kidney transplant.

After he lost his son to kidney failure in 1985, Richard Penrod went to get checked himself. He learned he had a small kidney, but doctors said it was functioning ok.

However, in the late 90's, he started getting sick. That's when he learned the small kidney was non-functioning, and his other one was functioning at around 35 percent.

For 12 years, his health continued to get worse. He developed high blood pressure and diabetes.  Last year, doctors said he was out of options, and he had to have dialysis or a transplant.

Once the word got around to his community and church, a long time friend, Kelly Tucker, offered one of her kidneys. It turned out to be a perfect match on the first try, and they had the transplant surgery on December 14.

"It felt really good to know that a friend cared that much for me, and I've known her since she was 10 years old," Penrod said. "To me, it was just amazing that she even offered not knowing if we would match or not."

Without Kelly's kidney, Richard would have had to wait on the donor list for three to five years and take dialysis in the mean time.

"As soon as he said he was on the transplant list, the thought occurred to me that that would be something I could do," Tucker said. "He lost his one child and didn't have any other children, so he didn't have children that could step up, so I thought about it for a little while and talked to my husband, and we just decided it would be the thing to do."

Both Richard and Kelly are recovering well. The community will also be holding a benefit on April 27 at 4:00 p.m. at the Preble Fireman's Park in Preble to help with the medical costs as they continue to recover.