A Pretty Remarkable “Good News Story”

Here’s a “Good News Story” that sounds like a made for TV movie (or the start of a joke). A woman in Upstate New York found a new kidney . . . at a BAR (???)! Kate Marsh had been on dialysis for years when she walked into “Tavern on the Mall” to grab take-out food. The owner asked everyone at the bar what their blood type was, and Allison Kwilos, a local teacher, turned out to be a match. Not only was Allison the same blood type, but she was a tissue match, and they shared other common genetic markers . . . and they’re not related! The surgery happened in May, and they’ve both made a full recovery. And how crazy is this? Their town (Forestville New York) only has around 500 people, but they’d never met before. Not that this story needs any more “Good”, but to celebrate and create awareness about organ donation, they planted a tree outside the window of Allison’s classroom.