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Methodist minister donates kidney to rabbi
Both donor, recipient say although people feel religion a barrier to organ donation, saving lives is encouraged
When a New Jersey Methodist minister heard a local rabbi needed a kidney transplant, religious differences did not stop her from stepping forward to offer him one of her own.
Rabbi Andrew Bossov is one of nearly 70,000 Americans currently awaiting a kidney transplant, and is set to receive a kidney from minister Karen Onesti on January 23., at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
"I asked him how he was, he said he needed a kidney, so I said I would give him one of mine," said Onesti. "My family lives to their mid-90s and we have good kidneys."
An average of 77 people a day receive life-saving organ transplants in the United States, according to government Web site www.organdonor.gov, but another 19 die while waiting.
"I'm tremendously lucky," said Bossov, of the Adath Emanu-El congregation in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, who agreed to Onesti's offer after finding his brothers were incompatible.
"We're trying to get the word out there that live donors are better. It saves rejection and repeated surgery for those who get them from cadavers and saves wait time," he added.
Bossov, 47, currently spends four hours a day, three days a week on dialysis. He previously spent more than nine years on medication to treat kidney disease and was placed on the transplant list a year ago.
Bossov and Onesti said many potential donors erroneously believed their religion was a barrier to organ donation.
"In Judaism and many forms of Christianity there is nothing barring organ donation at this point in time. The greater majority support donation to enhance and save lives," Bossov said. "This has been the case for years, but it takes time for people to catch up," he added. "You don't have to be scared."
Onesti, 49, of the United Methodist Church, added that post-mortem organ donation did not delay funeral rites, a religious concern shared by some.
"We're encouraging people to donate post-mortem, let their loved ones know and get it on their drivers' licenses if they can," Onesti said.
