'It's nice that I can help somebody': 911 dispatcher donates kidney to co-worker
Sandra Perry and Melissa Dailey have worked together as 911 dispatchers in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, for 16 years. They said they have admired and respected one another, but rarely socialized. Friday they created a bond most never will.
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"How can you thank somebody for giving a part of themselves?" asked Sandra Perry.
Perry suffers from kidney disease. She gets dialysis seven days a week. The only cure is a kidney transplant. Her co-worker had no idea.
"We went to a fellow employee's wedding reception, and Sandy said she had to leave early to go home and do dialysis. I knew she had kidney problems but I didn't know she was on dialysis," said Dailey.
Perry decided to get tested and was a match.
"I just kept living and doing what I was supposed to do and praying and for it to happen, but when Melissa said she would be my donor, I thought wait a minute, what did you say?" said Perry.
The two 911 dispatchers, who spend their days helping others, underwent transplant surgery on Friday.
"It's nice that I can help somebody over the phone and then someone in person," said Dailey.