The Windham man who plans to donate a kidney to a 24-year-old South Portland mother doesn’t have to worry any longer about taking time off work without pay. Josh Dall-Leighton’s Go Fund Me effort – through which he hoped to raise about $6,000 – was up to nearly $42,000 by early Thursday morning, and contributions continued to come in.
Local, national and international media outlets, including Fox News and Today.com, picked up the story following a recent Portland Press Herald article and video about Dall-Leighton’s gift to a complete stranger.
“It’s crazy,” says his wife, Ashley. “Someone donated $2,000. And then someone else donated $15,000. And at that point my jaw pretty much hit the floor.”
Dall-Leighton, a 30-year-old corrections officer who works in Alfred, happened to spot a sign on Christine Royle’s car last fall: “Looking for someone to donate me their kidney. Must have type O blood.”
Royles’ kidneys were failing because of an autoimmune disease and the single mother of a 2-year-old was desperate to find a donor. Dall-Leighton, who says he didn’t hesitate to contact the Maine Transplant Program when he saw Royles’ sign, underwent extensive testing this winter and found out last month that he is a match.
“I think it was the fact that I have three kids of my own, and that really resonated with me,” said Dall-Leighton. “If (my wife) needed a kidney and I couldn’t provide for her, I would hope that somebody else would kind of step up and help her out.” The Dall-Leightons’ twins, Mason and Christopher, are 10 months old. Their brother, Hayden, is 5.
The transplant surgery is tentatively scheduled for May 19, pending the results of one last test next week.
Ashley Dall-Leighton said she and her husband are overwhelmed by the generous donations. They’re also thrilled that the need for kidney donors is in the spotlight.
“I think this gives a lot of hope to others who need a transplant,” she said.
There are an estimated 100,000 people in the United States on the waiting list for a transplant, according to the National Kidney Foundation. Fewer than 17,000 receive one each year with about one-third coming from living donors.
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