Marine donates kidney to 15-year-old

Maybe it was Cpl. Ryan Fackey's natural inclination to give away almost anything. Maybe it was his service as a U.S. Marine in Iraq, where he saw countless children who had lived much harder lives than his.

Or perhaps his decision to give away a kidney simply was the answer to a chorus of prayers flowing from Columbia.

"I thought I was making a difference in Iraq," Fackey, 21, said. "I'm making a difference now. I like making life-changing decisions."

No matter what drove Fackey, his decision to donate one of his kidneys to a stranger extended the life of 15-year-old Dani Jones of Columbia.

The two never had met until recently at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. The operation was scheduled for Veterans Day.

Dani needed a kidney after a lifetime of taking steroids and other drugs had worn out her own. Those medications were needed to treat myelofibrosis, a rare disease that disrupts the body's ability to develop red blood cells.

Dani underwent a lifesaving bone marrow transplant at the age of 3 and has been dealing with side effects ever since.

The latest complication came in April, when doctors diagnosed kidney failure. After months of tests to make sure Dani would be a good candidate, she was placed on a transplant list Nov. 2.

Four days later, Dani's family got a phone call from MUSC saying she was a match with an anonymous living donor.

"He's an answer to prayers," said Hattie Wilson, Dani's grandmother.

Donors such as Fackey are rare in South Carolina, said Lucia Miles, MUSC's transplant coordinator for living donors. They are called "Good Samaritan" donors because they are giving to a person they have no previous relationship with.

In 2008, 171 people received new kidneys at MUSC, the state's only transplant center. Of those, 36 were from living donors. Only one of those donors was a "Good Samaritan," Miles said.

Fackey, who is from Hamilton, Ohio, serves as an FA-18 fighter jet mechanic at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort. In March 2008, he volunteered to spend seven months in Iraq.

A fourth-generation Marine, Fackey wanted a taste of combat.

While he "didn't see much action" in Iraq, Fackey spent a lot of time around the Iraqi people. Patrolling the streets, he would see dozens of children begging for candy and attention from the Marines.

Sometimes, they would show scars. Some had missing limbs. He doesn't know if those wounds were caused by the U.S. military or someone else.

He will say little else about that experience.

"After I got back, I started looking for other ways to give," Fackey said.

Fackey isn't sure what made him look into organ donation, but he said he is a fan of medical dramas.

He called his parents to let them know about his decision. And he researched Marine Corps regulations to make sure he would be allowed to do it. Then he called MUSC and asked to be put on its anonymous living donor list.

Fackey's parents were uneasy with their son's decision.

"I said, 'Ryan, I don't know about this,'?" said his mother, Brenda Fackey, who flew in from Ohio for the surgery. "He said, 'I can give one away and save someone's life. And I only need one to live.'?"

Brenda Fackey said she wasn't surprised by her son's decision because he always has been a generous soul.

Just this year, she mentioned during a phone call that her washing machine had broken. Ryan Fackey volunteered to buy her a new one.

"I said, 'Ryan, I can buy my own washer. And the next thing I know, there's a knock on the door, and Lowe's is delivering a new washing machine."

Ryan Fackey specified that the recipient of his kidney should be someone between 8 and 18. Otherwise, he didn't want to know anything about them.

Then Dani Jones and her family said they wanted to meet the donor.

Fackey agreed.

The list of medical problems Dani has dealt with over the years is extensive: kidney failure, two leg surgeries, diabetes, cataract surgery, growth deficiency and seizures. Doctors expect the transplant to give her a normal life expectancy and to cure her diabetes, said her mother, Paula Wilson.

She said she couldn't believe Dani and Fackey were a perfect match. "It's amazing," Wilson said.

Dani's mother has 12 siblings. At the hospital, an ever-present company of aunts, uncles and cousins is nearly impossible for a newcomer to keep up with.

On the morning of her surgery, Dani sent a text message to her aunts and uncles. "I am about to go to MUSC to have my kidney transplant. I just wanted to say I love you and don't let it bother you. ... Pray to Him and enjoy your day. Love, Your Strong Blessed Angel."

Dani took an instant liking to Ryan Fackey and his mother. She sent text messages to her friends about the cute Marine who was giving her a kidney.

"When they told me how old he was I was like, 'For real?' At least I'm getting a fresh, healthy kidney. I don't have to worry about no disease when I get out. I get a strong Marine."

The night before the surgery, Dani wanted a last meal of hot wings. She invited the Fackeys to join her family.

Ryan Fackey is a gregarious man. Almost everyone he meets becomes an instant friend.

At supper, he was teasingly snapping photos of his mother wearing glasses to read the menu when Dani had a seizure.

During the seizures, Dani gets fidgety and her eyes are unfocused. She falls asleep for a few minutes when they are over.

Fackey grew silent and serious. He turned his head and wiped his eyes. When Dani awoke, he whispered, "That makes me want to do this even more. I'm glad I'm giving my kidney to you."

Combined, the two surgeries lasted about six hours. Both patients made it through without complications.

How to be a 'Good Samaritan' donor

Transplant coordinators at the Medical University of South Carolina say a new person is placed on the national kidney transplant list every 11 minutes.

Most transplanted kidneys are harvested from deceased donors, said Lucia Miles, living-donor transplant coordinator at the Charleston hospital. Living donors usually give because they are related to or friends with the recipient. Very few give without connections to a patient, Miles said. Those people are called "Good Samaritan" donors.

If you are interested in becoming a Good Samaritan donor, call Miles at 792-8939 or 800-277-8687 or e-mail her at mileslg@musc.edu.

You also can research kidney donations at these Web sites: transplantliving.org, donatelifesc.org, unos.org or muschealth.com/transplant.