A Kidney At Last!

It was about five months ago, on May 17, that Danvers Patch first shared the story of a . 

Now, the , which has been broadcasted locally through businesses around town, and nationally through social media, has been deemed a success. Last week the Skinner family confirmed: they have found a kidney donor.

Jennifer Boyd, a longtime friend of the Skinner family, who currently lives in Fort Collins, CO, had contemplated the idea of being a donor for Anne for the past year. The 44-year-old with two sons had the support of her husband, friends, and coworkers, and after some extensive research, she told the Skinners that she was going to begin the testing process.

"The greatest moment came when I realized that Jennifer had passed all of her major testing and had been voted approved to be a living kidney donor," said Mike Skinner, husband of Anne Casale-Skinner for the past 11 years.

"Throughout this process I knew I could never ask anyone to donate a kidney, that all I could do was get our story out there and someone would come forward," he said. "Yet, it still does not prepare you for someone like Jennifer who truly wrapped her mind around this and has followed up at every stage of this process and is quite prepared."

The transplant will be taking place sometime at the end of October or beginning of November.

Throughout the search for a kidney, the Skinners had remained optimistic, but cautious. Medical ruleouts, or an individual deciding not to go through with donating was an unfortunate reality.

"When she made her arrangements to come to Mass General for three days of extensive testing we knew she was serious," said Skinner.

Still, Skinner said there were moments when he was discouraged and felt like a broken record.

"I realized along the way, people need fresh info to stay interested, so I looked for different ways to get the message out," Skinner said. "Facebook and Twitter have forever changed the landscape of how information travels and is disseminated."

And along the way, the family's message was shared by some popular folks, including Donnie Wahlberg, Kristie Alley, LL Cool J, and Dustin Pedroia.

So was Calling All Kidneys a success?

"I believe that Calling All Kidneys has been a success. We not only had a donor come forward, but we have been in contact with other people in similar situations who have encouraged us, helped share our story and inspired us along the way...on the flip side of it, we have become a model for others to follow and we have been able to support others as well," said Skinner.

Donating to Calling All Kidneys

Peoples United Bank c/o Calling All Kidneys
One Conant St
Danvers, MA                 
Checks payable to "Calling All Kidneys"

A fundraiser is also being planned for November 18 in Beverly. Skinner said anyone wishing to help out with donations of raffle or auction prizes would be appreciated.