My Kidney Donation Story: Jason Elmore
In mid-2019, my mother-in-law told us she would need a kidney transplant. She had known she would need a kidney since giving birth to her son 37 years ago, but she kept it to herself for a long time. When she told everybody, she was at about 20% kidney function. She simply refused to do dialysis. That was not the way she wanted to live her life.
My wife went through testing first and was ruled out by the CT scan. Then her brother went through it and was also ruled out by the CT scan. I offered to be tested next. I asked the doctors if I could do the CT scan first and they said, Sir, that’s not how it works.
We did the blood tests first, and the markers were good enough to go through the process. I got the call in October or November 2019 saying I could directly donate to her. I was kind of shocked.
I was on the fence about whether to do a paired donation because I was concerned about how someone would treat a donated kidney, but now I realize you just have to accept that. It’s about the giving, not what the recipient does with it.
I ended up donating directly to her. I was in Virginia when they called me, then I Facetimed them and said, did you still need a kidney? Everybody started tearing up and crying.
I retired from the Air Force in November 2024, but at the time I was still in the Reserve, and I had to check if I could still donate. It ended up not being an issue.
The first available date for the surgery was January 13, 2020. That was pretty lucky, because a few weeks later COVID hit, and a lot of those surgeries are considered elective, so they were postponed. By the time of the surgery, my mother-in-law was down to about 11% kidney function, so it’s good she didn’t have to wait any longer.
I had limited complications on my side. At about week nine or 10, I had some abdominal pain. I reached out to my coordinator, and we traded a few emails. They asked some questions about other medical things that may be causing it, but there was nothing else going on. I just stopped working out and it subsided.
I had started working out after the six-week restriction. I tried pull-ups at week seven and realized I wasn’t there yet. I started running at week 10 and I did a full Murph with the vest in May.
To anyone considering kidney donation, I would say that if you decide to do it, go in as healthy as possible because the recovery is a lot easier if you are healthy and fit.
If you have any hesitations about living with one kidney, you can look at the studies and see that most people with one kidney live longer than those with two kidneys because we tend to take care of ourselves better.
I would also stress that it’s a personal choice. It’s an amazing choice to give someone else a kidney to prolong their life, but it is your choice. It is between you and God.
About the Author
Jason Elmore lives in Keller, Texas, with his wife and two sons, ages 13 and 10. He retired from the Air Force Reserve in November. He enjoys working out and playing sports with his family, and does woodworking on the side. Jason is a frequent competitor in the Donor Games, winning the top podium spot in his first event, the 3-Rep Trap Bar Deadlift 2022 Open, with a lift of 500 pounds. He has since competed in numerous Donor Games Open virtual events and three Donor Games Championships. In his spare time, Jason makes hats for the Kidney Donor Athletes and donates a percentage back to the organization.