By My job is just high stress all day,” Jereme Peterson, a supervisor at a Texas federal prison, told his doctor when he first developed high blood pressure and diabetes.
For a long time, Jereme chalked up his constant fatigue to his career, but then his doctor sent him to an endocrinologist. “Your kidneys are functioning at less than 50 percent,” the endocrinologist said, and started him on home dialysis. “You need a new kidney.”
The doctor said it could take up to five years to find a matching donor, but Jereme didn’t want to die, so he continued with dialysis—often feeling worse than ever. Jereme’s mom and siblings all got tested as donors, but sadly, there were no matches.
“We need to spread the word,” said his brother John when he came for a visit. Together, they composed a message to post on social media: Only one kidney is needed for a healthy life and both of mine are in failure…
In Tallahassee, Florida, Angelina Attaway Baker was late-night scrolling online. “Oh my,” she sighed when she spotted a post from John Peterson about his brother Jereme needing a new kidney. Angelina and her husband, Anthony, had gone to high school with John in the late 90s. She even had John’s big brother, Jereme, in her junior year typing class. I hope he’ll be okay, Angelina thought, and she looked up Jereme’s profile and sent him a message: I’m praying for you.
That night, Angelina tossed and turned for hours, thinking about Jereme. She used to work at a dialysis center connecting and disconnecting patients from the lifesaving machines. She knew how hard it was.
The post had included a link to a preliminary donor questionnaire. What can it hurt to fill it out? Angelina thought. And she was only three questions in when a powerful knowing came over her.
I’m going to be a perfect match, she thought. I think I can save Jereme’s life.
Prayers answered
Jereme was finishing up his at-home dialysis treatment for the day when the call he’d prayed for finally came.
“We have a living donor kidney for you!” the transplant coordinator happily announced. “Really? Who is the donor?” Jereme asked, hardly daring to believe. The coordinator told him she couldn’t say because of HIPAA regulations. “Whoever it is, he or she is a true angel on Earth,” Jereme said. Little did he know how right he was.
Angelina had planned to stay anonymous, at least until after the surgery.
To keep them apart, the nurses always scheduled their appointments at different times. But the day before the surgery, Jereme got caught in traffic. He and his mom didn’t arrive for his hospital check-in until after Angelina and her mom had checked in.
Suddenly, Angelina’s attention was drawn to a familiar-looking figure at the reception desk. Could it be? she wondered, and ventured closer for a better look.
Jereme was nearly at the desk when he sensed someone approaching. He turned to see…and his thoughts reeled back 25 years to high school. “Angie? Angie Attaway—is that you?” he gasped, stunned.
“Hi, Jereme, it’s good to see you,” Angelina smiled, but Jereme was baffled.
“What are you doing in Texas?” he asked.
Angelina paused briefly, then smiled again. “I’m delivering your new kidney.”
Angelina watched as a dozen different expressions—from disbelief to gratitude—crossed Jereme’s face in less than a second. He threw his arms around her, and his mom hugged Angelina’s mom just as hard.
“This…is…incredible!” he kept saying. He was still marveling days later.
An act of love
The dual surgeries went perfectly. “Your angel is doing fine,” a nurse reported when Jereme woke up, and his very first question was, “How is Angelina?” Later, the same nurse filled in Angelina. “You must have given him a super kidney, the way it’s already working.”
The next day, Angelina visited Jereme in his room. “I feel more alive than I’ve felt in years…because of you,” he insisted.
Today, Angelina doesn’t miss the kidney she gave Jereme, who is healthy, strong and back to work. He and Angelina still talk and text regularly. “We have a special bond,” he says. “For the rest of my life, a part of her will be a part of me.”
“I knew right away God was calling me to help,” says Angelina. “I never doubted His plan once.”
