CINCINNATI — Standing on the corner of Bridgetown and Ebenezer roads, Kenny Johnson is hoping a stranger will help save his friend's life.
For the last week or so, Johnson has rallied on the sidewalks, wearing a sandwich board and hoisting a picket sign inscribed with his friend, Dave Harbison's, name. He wants to find Harbison a living kidney donor — and said he won't stop until he does.
"I'm just hoping someone sees me, and if they can't donate a kidney, they know someone who can," he said. "Being human, one of the things I love about it is, we can care about each other, and we don't know each other."
Harbison and Johnson met more than two years ago while undergoing dialysis treatment at Liberty Dialysis in North College Hill.
The two friends say their shared use of humor to cope with treatments brought them together.
"Before Dave got there, the dialysis clinic was like a funeral home," Johnson said. "As soon as they sat him next to me, it was just a different place."
"I first started dialysis and Kenny was already there, and he sort of took me under his wing," said Harbison, who receives 12 hours of dialysis treatment per week. "[We] became extremely, extremely good friends. Instantly. It was an instant bond."
Harbison was diagnosed with kidney failure in 2022 after a medical emergency.
Three days per week, he wakes up at 4:30 a.m. for treatments. By around noon, he's finished and starts his workday running a construction company.
"He fascinates me," Johnson said. "When he gets done ... he goes straight to work. He's still working, and I just think that's amazing."
After six years of dialysis treatment, Johnson received a kidney transplant earlier this year. He's now set his sights on helping an old friend.
"I just feel like I have to give back," Johnson said. "I can't leave my buddy behind. I [have] got to get a kidney for Dave."
To help find himself a living kidney donor, Harbison joined a program called Off the List.
To learn more about becoming a donor, or to begin the testing process on Harbison's behalf, visit the living donor questionnaire here.
You can also contact Antoinette Fassoth with UC Health at 513-584–0748 or antoinette.fassoth@UCHealth.com.
A living kidney donor is a healthy person who donates one of their two kidneys to a patient while they're alive.
Here are the requirements to become a live donor candidate, according to the National Kidney Foundation:
- You must be 18 years old, though some transplant centers require you to be 21 years old.
- You must be healthy and not have any existing medical conditions including uncontrolled high blood pressure, diabetes and cancer.
- If you're a smoker, you may be asked to quit before receiving approval to donate.
Per information from Off The List, most living donor surgeries are done laparoscopically, meaning it's a minimally invasive surgery, and discharge from the hospital is usually 24 to 48 hours after surgery.
Fueled by a sense of purpose, Johnson and Harbison both said they plan to advocate as "warriors" for others in need of living donations once Harbison is healthy.
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