When Page Calloway met Simansky’s husband, Ed Simansky, there were bound to be hugs and tears.
“Before the transplant, I was tired all the time, sick all the time, and I couldn’t really participate,” Callaway said.
With a kidney function of 12% and spending more than nine hours a day on dialysis, he’s practically not alive, Callaway says. She was on a long list to get a kidney donation.
Then came the phone. We had a match.
“I couldn’t even handle the fact that I got a phone call. I was told it would be very long.
Still, the moment was bittersweet.
“You know that God has allowed so much wonderful things to happen in your life, and that those prayers will be answered by the many who prayed for you,” Calloway said. “But at the same time, I know that someone has lost someone very special to them, and that this has taken a toll on someone else. “
After her recovery, Callaway reached out to the Szymansky family online to thank them.
“What she said in that message blew my mind,” Ed Simansky said.
They first met at WRAL Studios in Raleigh on Monday.
His visit was “wonderful, but also emotional.
“It just reminds us how much Erin meant to us. But it helps. It helps us move away from the sadness and bring joy to such a tragic event.”
A kidney transplant will allow Callaway to truly connect with her family and work again.
“She was alive and well. She’s a beautiful person and having a little piece of her is just such a gift,” Callaway said.
