A GOOD NEIGHBOR An 84-Year-Old’s Generous Gift Saves 72-Year-Old Neighbor
There are over 120,000 patients waiting for lifesaving organ transplants in the United States. These patients spend between 3–5 years on the list. For older patients, that wait can be too long. Linda Nall of Wimberly, Texas, became desperate when kidneys started to fail as a result of lupus. She did everything she could to find a viable donor, including creating a Facebook page, printing T-shirts and even putting up a sign up in her yard that read “I am type O and I need a kidney transplant. Please help me.” Not long after putting the sign up, Linda got a visit from a member of the town’s homeowners association, Frank Dewhurst. At first, Linda feared Frank would make her take down the sign. To her surprise, Frank offered to give Linda one of his kidneys. Frank, who happened to be type O and was in excellent health, had seen Linda’s sign while driving past her home. After discussing it with his wife, they agreed that helping Linda was the right thing to do. He underwent some tests to determine if he was cleared to donate and became the oldest living kidney donor in the United States at 84
years old. If that’s not impressive enough, Frank was discharged from Houston Methodist Hospital 48 hours
later and returned to his regular exercise routine.
... continued from Cover Linda was relieved to have a chance to spend more time with her friends and family, vowing to “make the most of Frank’s generous gift and live life to the fullest.” Frank, meanwhile, doesn’t see himself as a hero. “No big deal,” he told the Houston Chronicle. “I’m healthy and had what she needed, a functioning kidney. She wasn’t getting any better without one.” Linda and Frank’s story is inspiring and not just because it embodies the value of a good neighbor. In 2018, only 5% of kidney donors in the U.S. were over the age of 65. According to Dr. Hassan Ibrahim, chief of kidney diseases at Houston Methodist Hospital, if more older people donated, fewer people would spend their lives on the transplant list. people looking for the kind of service we offer and it’s always disheartening to have to tell someone we can’t help them because they live 100 miles outside of our delivery range. Recently, I started to think about the future of October Kitchen. There are whole underserved markets out there, coast to coast, who would benefit from what we do. By staying true to our vision, I believe we can grow to reach every single one of them. Everyone deserves to have a nutritious meal prepared by someone who genuinely cares about their well-being. This is my vision of October Kitchen for the next 100 years. This doesn’t mean we’re packing up and heading out to California. Our priority is and always will be our community. I’m humbled to see how much our customers rely on and look forward to their meals with us. As the years go on, I want us to remain the kind of company customers can rely on for nourishing food and sincere service — which might include sending a former pizza guy out to make an emergency chicken delivery.
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