Philadelphia woman says billboard inspired her to be living kidney donor

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A Philadelphia woman is sharing her experience as a living kidney donor and documenting it on social media, all in an effort to help save lives.

There's about 90,000 people who are waiting for a kidney in the U.S. alone and roughly only 6,000 people come forward to be living organ donors.

Some people wait nearly a decade for a match, living on dialysis and unable to enjoy the life they once had.

A Pennsylvania man's plea for a kidney on a highway billboard caught the attention of Leigh Paynter-Martinez.

"I said to myself, 'I really hope he gets a kidney.' Then I said to myself, 'Do I really mean that?'" said Paynter-Martinez.

It was an epiphany moment for someone who knows just how precious life is.

"My brother died at age 29. He had post-traumatic stress from his service in the Marines after serving in Afghanistan, and for four years he struggled," said Paynter-Martinez. "When someone you love tells you they don't want to live anymore, that's a different type of agony."

Leigh says seeing someone desperate to stay alive, knowing she could help, compelled her to register as an anonymous donor. The next day she got the call. She had undergone a series of tests which included several ECGs, a CAT scan, bloodwork and urine samples before scheduling her surgery in August.

"All of your doctor's appointments, travel expenses, anytime you have to take off of work, the national kidney registry will reimburse you for that," said Paynter-Martinez.

She documented the entire process on TikTok from her hospital bed to show others how simple and pain-free the surgery was. When asked what was the most uncomfortable part, she said the gas and bloating.

"I had asked my husband, 'Is this what I would have looked like pregnant? And he was like no, you look more like Danny DeVito when he was playing the penguin in the Batman movie.' I was like, this is gross," she said.

Paynter-Martinez was walking that same day, back to work after five days, and walking her dog again after two weeks.

"When you donate your kidney, anonymously, they will give you basically a golden ticket. It's a voucher and I can give it to anyone I want or I can hold onto it for a family member who may need a kidney in the future. I gave that voucher to the person whose advertisements I kept seeing," said Paynter-Martinez.

Her selfless sacrifice ended up saving two lives, instead of one. She says she knows who the recipient is but wants to remain anonymous. She says she just wants them to go back to living the life they once had without any obligation to thank her.

Paynter-Martinez said she hopes her story encourages others to save a life, too.