This West Richland firefighter was in a race against time. Then a friend stepped up [Tri-City Herald (Kennewick, Wash.)]

Tri-City Herald (Kennewick, WA)

Aug. 7—A West Richland firefighter is recovering after a longtime friend gave him a gift that will save his life — and his career.

Benton County Fire District 4 Capt. Raymond Newton received a kidney donated from a friend on Tuesday.

"(I'm) taking it day by day," he told the Herald.

After months of searching and negotiating with insurance companies, Newton announced success in securing a donation in a recent Facebook post.

"We are so very grateful for all of the wishes, prayers and donations that we have seen," the post said.

"Our community and that of the fire service have been such a blessing in our lives! ... We have such great friends and family and feel extremely grateful that we even have been given this opportunity to save the life of a local firefighter, dad, son and husband."

It's great news for Newton who has been in a race to replace his failing kidneys before he needed dialysis.

Newton, 46, has spent about 20 years with polycystic kidney disease. The hereditary degenerative condition causes growths on his kidneys and has left him unable to go out on emergency calls.

It's a hereditary illness that his father had as well. His goal was to find someone willing to donate a kidney because living kidneys have a much longer life than ones donated after someone dies.

Kidneys from living donors last 12 years on average while a kidney from a deceased donor normally functions for about eight years.

The Herald first shared Newton's story in December, and media reports generated a lot of interest from potential donors.

But just as soon as Virginia Mason Medical Center was preparing to test them, Newton got the bad news. His health insurance provider wouldn't cover the cost of the transplant at that hospital.

That left Newton facing the possibility of starting the entire transplant process over with a different hospital, and going through all the testing again to get approved.

He worked with his chief, the hospital and insurance officials to make sure that didn't happen.

A GoFundMe campaign was organized to help raise money for his recovery efforts. People can still contribute by going to bit.ly/NewtonFundraiser.

This story was originally published August 7, 2023, 5:00 AM.

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