Courtroom foes share kidneys
Two Texas lawyers put aside courtroom differences to share their kidneys.
Here are the details from Jessica Cooley, Lawyer gives kidney to fellow Baylor Law School graduate whom he often faced in court, Waco Tribune, March 9, 2009:
Scott Skelton, a Lufkin attorney diagnosed with a life-threatening kidney disease, received the gift of life from an unlikely source — a Longview attorney and frequent courtroom adversary. * * *
An attorney with Keith Langston’s Longview firm found out that Skelton needed a transplant. Skelton and Langston, who graduated from Baylor Law School in 2001, had been friends and colleagues for years, but Langston did not know that Skelton’s kidneys were failing.
“Keith called me one day and said, ‘I hear you need a kidney — I want to donate one,’ ” Skelton said. “I never dreamed that he would be the one to offer me a kidney. It just goes to show that it pays to make friends in all walks of life.” * * *
“I don’t think many people realize this, but the donor surgery is done laprascopically now, with the exception of removing the kidney,” Langston said. “I have four puncture wounds and a 3-inch incision line.”
Skelton woke in recovery room feeling energized and ready to focus on getting his life back.
“My recovery has been remarkable,” he said. “Just two days post-op, my labs were normal for someone my age and size.”
Both men are doing well. Langston returned to work this week, and Skelton has been released from the hospital and will be staying in a Dallas apartment for the next few weeks to make his frequent trips to the doctor more manageable. * * *
As soon as the men fully recover, they want to work together to become advocates for live donation. Both made the decision long ago to be listed as organ donors, but neither imagined he would be involved with a live donation.
“There are 80,000 people on the kidney donor list, and we could wipe that list out through live donation,” Langston said. “I want people to know that it only takes five or six days to help someone live a full and happy life.”
To find out how to become a live donor, visit online at www.kidney.org.