Woman responds to prayer request of ailing parishioner
Friday, May 14, 2010 2:52 AM
By Gail Martineau
Vonden Sparks, left, received a kidney from Terry Meade. Both are members of New Albany United Methodist Church.
Vonden Sparks, left, received a kidney from Terry Meade. Both are members of New Albany United Methodist Church.
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Vonden Sparks and Terry Meade have a spiritual and physical bond that will last the rest of their lives.
Both are members of New Albany United Methodist Church, but they barely knew each other until August — when Meade donated a kidney to Sparks.
Now, they consider each other family.
Before the transplant, Sparks had end-stage renal disease, the result of a long battle with diabetes. He’d been on the waiting list for a kidney transplant for two years.
The only thing keeping him alive – aside from faith and a sense of humor, he said – was frequent dialysis, and that couldn’t continue indefinitely.
The Johnstown resident, now 56, was just about out of options when he appealed to his congregation in a prayer request last year.
“The congregation has so many connections,” said Nancy Goulet, head pastor at New Albany United Methodist. “We didn’t know if any of them individually would be able to help.”
Meade said that as soon as she heard the prayer request, she felt called to help Sparks.
“God decided this whole event,” said Meade, 64. “I would have never done it in any other event.”
Meade, who lives in Westerville, went through about five months of physical and mental examinations at Ohio State University Medical Center to determine whether she would be a suitable donor for Sparks.
“I’ve been tested from the tip of my toes to the top of my head,” she said, laughing.
Sparks was thrilled when he received word that a donor had been identified. He was amazed when he found out who it was.
“She contacted me about two weeks before the surgery and said that we’ve got a surgery date,” he said. “I was totally shocked.”
Goulet, on the other hand, said she wasn’t surprised.
Meade, the pastor said, is “one always wanting to do for others.”
“That’s just her nature,” Goulet said. “It just warms my heart to know that people take their faith so seriously and that they are willing to give a part of themselves – literally.”
Meade said the experience has made her a believer in organ donation.
“I would do it again in a heartbeat if I had double of everything,” she said. “It only really hurt for about 12 hours.”
Helping Sparks, she said, has changed her life.
“The change isn’t physical, it’s more mental and spiritual,” she said. “Knowing I’ve given him the ability to enjoy life a little longer – it’s hard to put it into words. It’s a feeling of true fulfillment.”
Sparks said he hopes others follow Meade’s example. If nothing else, he said, people should arrange to donate their organs upon death.
“I think it’s a shame that people pass away and are buried with organs,” he said. “Why not give the gift of life to someone who needs it? There is no reason for anyone to die for lack of an organ.”
Sparks and Meade, who in the past might have exchanged greetings every other Sunday, now sit through church services with their arms around each other.
“She’s a sister now,” Sparks said. “That’s just the way it goes. You develop a relationship with the person who gives you life. If it wasn’t for them, you’d be dead or having a life of dialysis.
“It makes you feel real good about where you go to church.”
gmartineau@thisweeknews.com