Methodist physical therapist connects with former Mercy softball teammate for life-changing kidney donation

Share your spare.

While most people are born with two functioning kidneys, it’s possible to live a healthy life with only one. That’s why “share your spare” has become a popular phrase used to encourage people to consider being a living kidney donor.

Methodist Hospital physical therapist Emily Crowe, DPT, PT, decided she’d pursue the donation process after seeing a former high school softball teammate’s Facebook post about looking for a living organ donor.

“If I was healthy enough and was a match, I figured I might as well do it,” Crowe said.

High school connection

In the fall of 2005, Crowe was a senior on the Mercy High School softball team in Omaha and Chrissy Zbylut was a freshman. As a newcomer on the team, Zbylut looked up to Crowe as one of the leaders.

The two didn’t become great friends, but they kept up with each other through social media and have occasionally seen each other at the annual St. Stanislaus Polish Festival. 

Nearly 20 years after their paths crossed on the softball field, Zbylut – a type 1 diabetic – posted on Facebook that she was seeking a living kidney donor. Her doctors were optimistic that she’d find a match.

Prior to seeing Zbylut’s post, Crowe hadn’t thought much about being an organ donor, but she knew that Zbylut had a young son at home and wanted to help if she could.

With the support of her husband, Crowe completed the necessary paperwork and signed up for a full day of testing at Nebraska Medicine.

A few weeks after completing an electrocardiogram, urine tests, ultrasounds of her kidneys, a CT scan and a meeting with the transplant team, Crowe received the good news. She was a match and eligible to be a living donor for her former teammate.

Support from co-workers

Crowe never doubted that her supervisor Sarah Cockle, DPT, PT, Methodist Hospital’s service leader for therapy services, would be accommodating with her work schedule to allow her to pursue being a living donor.

“She’s always very flexible when you need to be,” Crowe said. “She’s a great boss and great resource.”

Since Crowe was going to be out of work for six weeks after the surgery, some of her co-workers wanted to help by setting up a meal train or purchasing gift cards. They were also interested in learning more about the organ donor process. 

“We have a really, really good group – all of our therapists and techs,” Crowe said. “It’s really a great place to work. It’s very open and everyone is supportive.”

Occupational therapist Heather Kaiser, MOT, OTR/L, went a step further and reached out to many businesses around the metro area to see if they’d be able interested in helping out Crowe and her family – including boys ages 4 and 6 – during her post-surgery recovery. 

Businesses that stepped up to support the Crowe family included Spare Time Omaha, Javi’s Tacos and Salted Edge.

Alarming discovery

Zbylut, 33, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when she was 4. 

She met her future husband when she was 20, and the couple discussed wanting a family. So Zbylut decided to get her diabetes in check, something she admits she neglected during her teenage years. Unfortunately, Zbylut discovered she had stage 3 chronic kidney disease, but she was told by her care team that it was manageable.

Three years ago, after many years of trying to get pregnant, the Zbyluts were expecting their first child.

During the pregnancy, everything was going smoothly and Zbylut’s A1C was at 6 – a prediabetic level – until a routine checkup when she was 32 weeks pregnant turned into an emergent situation. 

A urine test revealed that her kidneys weren’t doing well – her chronic kidney disease was now categorized as stage 4. Methodist maternal-fetal medicine specialist Todd Lovgren, MD, told her she needed to deliver the baby.

The Zbyluts’ son, Brock, was successfully delivered via C-section and spent a little over a month in the Methodist Women’s Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) before heading home. 

Zbylut thought her kidney function levels would go back to prepregnancy levels a few months after the birth, but things weren’t getting any better, so she put herself on the organ donor wait list.

When her son was about 18 months old, Zbylut finally came to terms that she needed to pursue a living donor, which would likely expedite a transplant and allow her to not rely on dialysis.

“I figured it wasn’t just about me, but it was also about Brock,” Zbylut said. “If it was just me, I probably would’ve just stayed on the wait list.”

‘Thank you is never going to be enough’

About two months after posting about seeking a living kidney donor, Zbylut received a Facebook message from Crowe saying that she was a match and interested in finding a surgery date.

“I had so many emotions,” Zbylut said. “It’s such a selfless thing to do. Giving gifts is my love language, and this is one of those things that I can never repay her for. And how do you say thank you for a gift like a kidney? Thank you is never going to be enough.”

Crowe and Zbylut completed the kidney transplant on March 6.

Just a few weeks post-surgery, Zbylut said she can already see improvements in her day-to-day life.

“I feel amazing and have so much more energy,” she said.

The pair met up for lunch on the final Friday of March. Zbylut hopes the duo can get together at least annually now that they’re connected for the rest of their lives. 

“She’s giving me a chance to live my life and be a good mom to my son,” Zbylut said. “It means the world to me.”