El Paso man donates kidney to stranger, creates new friendship

An El Paso man gave the gift of life to a complete stranger by donating his kidney. In return, an unbreakable friendship has formed.

Bill Carvajal said he just wanted to make a difference in someone’s life. He was on the National Kidney Registry for about 5 years and willing to donate at anytime.

“I’ve been very blessed with 58 almost years of very good health,” Carvajal said. “If I could share that with someone else and make a difference in their life, it’s all worth it.”

A few months ago, he got a call from Jean Wang in New York. Wang suffers from polycystic kidney disease. She said if she does not receive a transplant soon, she will need to go on dialysis. So she turned to the website, matchingdonors.com.

“I said ok, fine. I’ll reach out and see what happens. I left a phone message for Bill and never expected him to call back and he called back,” Jean Wang said. “I had to sit down. I was shaking. I couldn’t believe it.”

After having some tests done, Carvajal found out he wasn’t a good genetic recipient for Wang. However, he was still able to make a difference.

“Although I wasn’t a good genetic recipient for Jean, I could be for another person,” Carvajal said. “Rather then having her wait a number of years to get to the top of the list, she went straight to the top of the list on the account of I would donate to a third party anonymously.”

So that’s exactly what Carvajal did. Five weeks ago, Carvajal underwent surgery to donate his kidney. It has since been transplanted into a woman in San Diego.

“She has normal kidney function to this day,” Carvajal.

As for Wang, she is now at the top of the transplant list and is set to have surgery this summer, all thanks to Carvajal.

“I just don’t know why someone would go through this for another stranger,” Wang said.

Wang said her anticipated surgery means she gets to continue to be a mom to her 1-year-old son.

“With dialysis I would never be able to have a life with my son,” Wang said. “I feel like it’s fate.”

To visit the National Kidney Registry click here. To learn more about Donate Life America click here. For information on matching donors click here.