Some people got candy and flowers on Valentine’s Day, but for one couple, a kidney was the perfect gift.
Joy and Richard Mach have known for 40 years they’re the perfect match.
Her urgent need for a kidney transplant added a whole new meaning to the phrase.
“I wanted to do everything I could to make sure that she would survive,” Richard said.
Doctors declare Richard’s kidney a match and so the couple set up the surgeries for the day before Valentine’s Day.
Just before heading into side-by-side operating rooms, a profound moment happened between husband and wife on matching gurneys.
“Basically we kissed, we clinched, and I guess we just said we’ll see you on the other side. I was just very emotional when I saw her,” Richard said.
Profound and romantic, but in an indication that the two were recovering nicely, a note of humor too.
“He couldn’t come up with anything else to give me for Valentine’s Day, so he gave me a kidney,” Joy said.
For the couple, it’s a line that may never get old.
“He’s really given me a gift of life.”
Joy’s recovery will take a few months.