When Robert Orange opened the door to his local church
in Jersey City on a fall evening back in 1998, he came
face-to-face with a person who would change his life forever.
According to Mr. Orange, it was “love-at-first-sight” when
he encountered his future wife, Cherie, on her way out
of Christ the King Church. “I just knew I had to
get to know this woman. Little did I know that she was
going to impact my life the way she has. I am a very blessed
man.”
 From that day on, Mr. and Mrs. Orange were inseparable and the couple
ultimately married in October of 2000. At the time, Mr. Orange,
51, was suffering from high blood pressure and heart disease.
His kidneys had failed after a heart attack six years earlier,
which necessitated him being placed on dialysis. Like many
dialysis patients, Mr. Orange would spend three days a week
for four hours a day at a dialysis center in Jersey City.
While he kept up his spirits, just happy to have found his
soul mate, being on dialysis for nearly 10 years was taking
its toll on his physical health. His physicians at Newark
Beth Israel Medical Center, an affiliate of the Saint Barnabas
Health Care System, listed him on the renal transplant registry.
He and Mrs. Orange realized a transplant was his only hope
for living a longer, more productive life.
“One day on our way home from dialysis, Cherie announced
she was detouring to Newark Beth so she could be tested as
a living donor. I was shocked and thrilled at the same time.
I was happy that she was willing to do this for me, but I
didn’t want to get too excited because it was a long
shot that we would be compatible,” Mr. Orange said.
Added Mrs. Orange, “For a while, even before I met
Robert, I had been wondering what my purpose in life would
be. After meeting and marrying him, the idea of family took
on a whole new meaning. I prayed on it. I knew I had to do
all I could for him. He is my husband and I take my marriage
vows seriously. I wanted Robert to have a better quality
of life.”
Fortunately for Mr. Orange, his wife was a match. On February
27, 2003, he received her kidney. Stuart Geffner, M.D., led
the surgical team removing Mrs. Orange’s left kidney.
In the adjacent operating room, Steven Guy, M.D., prepared
Mr. Orange to receive his wife’s kidney. The donor
nephrectomy was performed laparoscopically. Four hours later,
the couple was in recovery. Mrs. Orange stayed in the hospital
for two days, while her husband remained as an inpatient
for five days.
“Preparing for the surgery was made easier by all
the information and support we received from the renal transplant
coordinators, physicians and social worker. We were educated
and kept up-todate every step of the way,” Mr. Orange
said.
According to Carmen Flores, RN, transplant coordinator,
thorough screening of prospective living kidney donors and
recipients as well as extensive counseling from social workers
is customary. Donors must also understand the extent of the
operation and that organs must be donated without the expectation
or any form of compensation.
Eighteen months later, the couple find themselves back at
the dialysis center on a regular basis. Only now, they are
there to speak with patients, their family members and friends
about the Living Donor Program at the Renal and Pancreas
Transplant Center at Newark Beth Israel. According to Mrs.
Orange, her husband “is a super advocate for organ
donation. Everywhere he goes, he tells our story – even
in the supermarket.”
“It’s our calling. This is our way of giving
back for all our good fortune, for all the friends we have
made and for all blessings we have received. Cherie and I
know what has happened to us is all part of a bigger plan
and we’ll do whatever we can to help others,” Mr.
Orange said.
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