Ohio high school student in need of kidney gets gift from unlikely source: His math teacher

A 15-year-old high school student who urgently needed a new kidney got a surprise from an unlikely source this year when his math teacher agreed to be the donor.

Eddie McCarthy. a geometry teacher from Whitmer High School in Toledo, Ohio, said he first saw a story in February about Roman McCormick needing a kidney donor. The story was two months old by that point, McCarthy said, and he secretly went to get tested to see if he was a match.

After undergoing several tests and waiting several months, doctors told McCarthy that he was a suitable donor match. In June, he was given a surgery date and at that point, McCarthy decided to share the news with Roman's family.

Roman's mom, Jamie Redd, said she was driving to pick up her daughter from school when she learned of McCarthy's gift.

"I couldn't believe it!" Redd recalled Monday afternoon. "I was driving to the library to pick up my daughter when Eddie called and told me he is my son donor. The doctors at the University of Michigan keeps you in the dark so we didn't know anything. I was very happy to find out that the donor was someone who knew my son."

Redd said Roman was thrilled to learn the news, but he's currently maintaining a composed demeanor ahead of his surgery Wednesday.

"He is real chill for someone who is about to have surgery," Redd said. "He has always been an easygoing kid, I never had problems with him. But now that we are two days away he told me he is a little nervous now."

Connections like Roman's and McCarthy's are the reason why organizations like Kidney for Kids take time to publicize stories about patients who need donors, said Redd, who noted that the organization's director, Brian Martindale, also donated a kidney to a young girl he didn't know in 2013,

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"Brian was the one who went to our local stations and advocated for our story," Redd said.

McCarthy said his only goal, aside from getting Roman the kidney he needs, is to make other people aware of how easy it can be to save lives.

"I want people more people to donate a kidney to someone in need of it," McCarthy said. "You only need one kidney to remain healthy. Go check the donor list and see who needs it."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: High school math teacher donates kidney to student, shocking family