A Florida fire inspector gave a captain in her department a special gift last week: a kidney.
In November 2018, Hillsborough County Fire Rescue Capt. Jeff Hewett discovered he needed a kidney transplant, according to a Facebook page dedicated to his surgery. Sharri Dufresne, a fire inspector with the department, offered to donate her kidney, and she was approved as a match in late January.
Originally, surgery was scheduled for March 25, but because it was considered an elective surgery, the hospital rescheduled it because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The new date was May 6.
"Sharri’s spirit of caring and generosity are beyond measure," a post on the Facebook page dedicated to Hewett's surgery stated. "There are not words to express our appreciation and gratitude for Sharri."
Both surgeries were a success, according to Hillsborough County Fire Rescue. Dufresne was released from the hospital Friday, and Hewett was released Sunday.
"We thought Jeff would need a week more, but was doing so well he was discharged today!" the department stated in a social media post. "What a fantastic ending to this story!"
