For the last five years, Roger “Bubba” Morales has been on the search for a kidney donor. He was told he needed a new one in 2019, but was informed that at 75, he was too old to go on the transplant list. So, the Aurora, Colorado, man has been on dialysis three days a week for four hours a day, getting up at 3:30 in the morning to get there.
Bubba’s fiancé Cheryl wanted to help him find a donor, so she made business cards and signs, even putting a sign on the back window of his car that reads: “Bubba Needs A Kidney.” "I think everybody kind of laughed at me when I said I wanted to put it on his car," Cheryl recalls. "It worked." In April, that sign caught the attention of Abby Lutalo, who was driving behind them in traffic.
She pulled into a parking lot beside Bubba and Cheryl, jumped out and said, “Who needs a kidney?” Abby was inspired by the death of a relative who was an organ donor and she wanted to donate if she ever got the chance. Testing showed she was a match for Bubba and their kidney transplant surgery is coming up on October 14th. Beyond grateful for the kindness of this former stranger, Bubba says, “She’s a saint. She’s an angel from heaven, and I'm much happier to meet her here and hang out with ya'll for a bit longer".