Dad's plea for kidney during Disney World trip results in transplant
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - The single father of five who wore a “In Need of Kidney” T-shirt to Walt Disney World last summer underwent a kidney transplant last week in New York.
Robert Leibowitz, 60, of New Jersey, never imagined how magical his family’s vacation trip to the Magic Kingdom would be after securing a kidney from a stranger -- thanks to another stranger’s viral social media post about his special hand-made T-shirt.
Rocio Sandoval and her husband, Juan, did a double take when they saw the T-shirt worn by Leibowitz. The Orlando, Florida couple asked Leibowitz if they could post a picture of his shirt on Facebook.
"We just wanted to help him out," Rocio said.
"They made me the happiest person in the world," Leibowitz told FOX 35. "I said, absolutely!"
These total strangers, who met between Cinderella Castle and Frontierland, never would have guessed that the post would have gone viral.
Richie Sully, 39, a father of two from Fort Wayne, Ind., was one of those who saw the post, and it turned out that Sully was a match for a transplant.
Arrangements were made for the surgery in New York City last week. Sully and Leibowitz were reportedly doing well following the procedure at New York-Presbyterian Cornell Medical Center in Manhattan.
Leibowitz plans to take his donor and Sandoval to Disney World to celebrate his fairy-tale ending.
Some information taken from FoxNews.com.