Zion woman Debbie Ramsey celebrates rare 40th anniversary of life-saving kidney transplant and connects with donor family

ZION, Ill. (WLS) — It's been 40 years since a suburban woman received a kidney transplant. Kidney is now 80 years old.

Zion woman Debbie Ramsey spent years trying to thank her donor's family, but this spring she finally got in touch.

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Ramsay threw a party that few people could attend. She celebrated her 40th birthday after receiving a kidney transplant.

Ramsay, who turned 69 a few weeks ago, has kept the kidney that saved his life for 40 years. She put her years of life to good use and raised a large family thanks to a man who donated her organs after his death.

“I was given something. I was given a gift,” Ramsey said. “Maybe I can help someone else on their journey.”

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Doctors say kidneys from living donors typically survive 10 to 15 years longer than kidneys from deceased donors like Ramsay.

“A pivotal role in our success was played by Deborah herself. For 40 years, she paid close attention to her health and her kidneys,” said Dr. Akanksha Agrawal, a transplant nephrologist at Northwestern Medicine. Ta.

Ramsey gives back to the transplant community by volunteering at organ donation events. She also competed in transplant competitions and won medals in swimming.

She says she is trying to spread the message about the dire need for organ donation and was able to attend her son's wedding last month.

“It was amazing and she came here to live it,” said her son Kevin Ramsey.

Debbie Ramsey says she is incredibly grateful to the donor and his family. She searched for the donor's relatives for decades before finally discovering the donor's widow in DeKalb County in a search of genealogy records at the Zion Benton Library. She sent him a letter of gratitude, and the exchange began this spring.

“It took her a little while to write back, but she did,” Ramsey said. “It opened up some wounds and put everything back together.”

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The donor's family is happy to communicate with Mr Ramsey, but wishes to keep his identity secret at this time. Still, Ramsey said her donor would have turned 80 this year and she was determined to continue to honor his life.