Teachers are often the unsung heroes of communities, and one elementary school teacher in Ohio is helping to save a life of a student at her school by donating a kidney to her.
Eva Brown, 10, was put on dialysis in August after she was diagnosed with collapsing focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, a rare disease that caused her kidney to only function at 4 percent, ABC News reported.
READ: Wife Says ‘Let God Do His Part,’ Discovers She’s a Match For Husband’s Kidney Transplant
The dialysis process is long and exhausting, Eva’s mother, Alana Brown said, adding that Eva also takes up to 30 pills every day. Without it, Eva could die within days.
Brown struggled to find a kidney match for her daughter. Out of all the family members, Eva’s father is the only one with the same blood type, O-Positive, but due to his blood pressure and unknown family medical history (since he was adopted), doctors deemed him an ineligible match as well, Brown said.
When Brown asked a friend to spread the word on Facebook about Eva’s quest for a kidney, Slate Ridge Elementary School Tanya Thomas answered the call.
After undergoing tests, Thomas learned that she was a match. One day, while Brown was at Eva’s school, she ran into Thomas, who hadn’t previously revealed that she worked there.
“I just started crying,” Brown said of the chance encounter.
A Reynoldsburg teacher becomes a student’s real life superhero! It’s a heartwarming story that is saving a little girl’s life, tonight! #TransplantSisters #OrganDonation #LivingDonor #OrganDonor #TeacherAppreciationWeek @ReynSchools pic.twitter.com/IQiqGIGtxK
— Jackie Orozco (@JackieWSYX6) May 11, 2018
Although Eva is in fourth grade, and Thomas teaches fourth grade, the two had never met.
Now, they will be “transplant sisters,” Thomas said.
“This is my angel,” Brown told WSYX while hugging Thomas.
Because of Thomas, Eva will have a new chance at life, Brown said.
“My baby has a chance and she doesn’t have to be connected to a machine 10 hours a day,” Brown said, wiping away tears.
Eva said Thomas is now family.
“I felt really excited because she’s going to save my life, and I don’t have to be sick anymore,” Eva said. “I get to go swimming because I’m not able to go swimming and I think she’s a good person.”
“My baby has a chance to live and she doesn’t have to be connected to a machine 10 hours a day” a mom overjoyed her little girl found a perfect match for a kidney transplant. Details on the donor tonight #OrganDonor @nationwidekids @ReynSchools pic.twitter.com/hY5D0vg8Mj
— Jackie Orozco (@JackieWSYX6) May 11, 2018
Eva said that now that she has a teacher’s DNA, she’s going to “have to be a good teacher someday,” Brown said.
The operation is scheduled for May 30, as long as Eva is strong enough to undergo it.
Eva will document her journey on YouTube to encourage other children with the condition and help them face the process.
A YouCaring account has been set up to help pay for Eva’s healthcare.
(H/T: ABC News)