The following was related to Lakewood Alerts by Rabbi Moshe Wilhelm, the head Chabad Shliach in Oregon:
Three years ago, my father Rabbi Moshe Wilhelm, was the recipient of a kidney transplant.
The donation was facilitated by Renewal, an organization which promotes the safety of kidney donations, matches donors with recipients, advises and supports them and their families through the process.
The donor, a woman from Lakewood, NJ did not know who the recipient would be and was doing this completely altruistically. Such decisions don’t come easy and the family decided to seek out the advise of the Gadol Hador, Hagaon HaRav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l.
“I cannot instruct to donate your kidney, but I can tell you that there is no greater Mitzvah than to do so” was Reb Chaim’s reply. Once they made the decision to go ahead with the donation, again they asked him for a Bracha and on the day of the surgery he Davened for its success.
His guidance firmed the resolve and courage of this middle aged mother to donate her kidney to someone she did not even know.
The new kidney my father received infused him with fresh energy and vigor to carry out the mission the late Lubavitcher Rebbe zt”l tasked him with in 1984 and our families have bound in a unique manner. In 2020 they came to Portland for my sisters wedding and two weeks ago my parents were in Lakewood to attend the wedding of their son.
(Photo is from a Sheva Brochos hosted by the Wilhelm family for the son of the donors. Rabbi Wilhelm and the donor’s husband are pictured.)