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Friendship
Eileen Rooney & Jennifer Dudley
Colchester , VT
Special Friendship Forms between Anonymous Kidney Donor and her Recipient
When Eileen Rooney and Jennifer Dudley finally met, they laughed, cried and could hardly believe how much they had in commom.
Their meeting and ensuing friendship was a happy ending to a story that began in November 2005 when the two participated in one of only 84 (out of 16,000 performed last year) kidney transplants involving living donor and recipient who were absolute strangers.
For Eileen, 42, who grew up in Essex Junction, Vermont, in a family with seven siblings, organ donation was something she'd considered since she was 12 years old. Five years ago, while working as the evening manager of the Ronald McDonald House in Burlington, she witnessed the distress a family was undergoing while their child, who was suffering from kidney failure, waited for a new organ. Eileen began exploring whether she could offer one of her kidneys to the young boy but he died before anything could be done. Eileen decided to honor the boy's memory through an anonymous donation of one of her kidneys.
Eileen's Fortunate Recipient
Jennifer Dudley was diagnosed with kidney cancer at 18 months and underwent surgery to remove a 10-pound tumor. Cobalt radiation treatments followed. “At the time, I was the youngest child in England (where I was born) to go through the procedure and survive it,” Jennifer recalls.
Following her marriage to Ted Dudley, a U.S. Air Force fighter pilot stationed in England, the couple settled in Vermont.
In 1997, when Jennifer’s kidney problems returned and doctors predicted that she would need dialysis within three years. “I was shocked,” says Jennifer. “I didn't feel like anything was wrong.” Jennifer adjusted her diet to ease the stress on her kidneys and delay the need for dialysis. She also put her name on a list of people seeking a kidney transplant.
In November of 2005, Eileen Rooney's and Jennifer Dudley's surgeries took place in adjoining operating rooms. Both were a success. The biggest concern of the transplant coordinator was keeping the patients and their families from bumping into each other before, during and directly after the operations.
Jennifer's new kidney has completely changed her life. “I didn't know how bad I felt before,” she said. “Now I feel really, really good.”
The recovery for donor Eileen was swift too. Eight days following the surgery, Eileen went kayaking. In the ensuing months since the two women first met, the friendship between Jennifer and Eileen blossomed. Now the two see each other weekly. “I think we lucked out,” says Rooney, fingering the matching angel necklaces the two wear.
This week, Eileen and Jennifer will celebrate the miracle of transplantation and organ donation when they attend the National Kidney Foundation U.S. Transplant Games. There, they will have speaking roles at the Living Donor Recognition Event, participate in the 5K Race for organ and tissue donation and acknowledge the gift of life and friendship that the two of them now share.
