GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - A local transplant center is playing catch-up after receiving an overwhelming amount of inquiries recently. Mercy Health St. Mary's Kidney Transplant Center says it's due to a compassionate community that heard the plea of a 22-year-old.
13 ON YOUR SIDE first introduced you to Alyssa Clark last week as her family decorated dozens of cars advocating for a spare kidney.
"All of the sudden my life like went upside down," Clark told 13 ON YOUR SIDE.
Since her recent media push, the phone at the Transplant Center has been ringing off the hook.
"By Friday morning we had over 80 voicemails on our phone line, so obviously it became a huge success over night. And then other media started picking up the story, and it's only kind of escalated from there," Kelly Summers, the Transplant Center Manager, said.
It got to the point where Mercy Health put out a media alert asking the public to have patience, as they get back to each call individually.
"We're trying to get through them as quickly as possible and really find those people that can make it through or who are willing to make it through," Summers said.
Living donors are very important to those on the transplant list, as they last longer than one received from someone who is deceased. The recent influx has those at Mercy Health confident they could have a chance to not only help Clark but hundreds of others whose stories have yet to be told.
"We're really hopeful and optimistic these people coming forward in our community will not only help those that are campaigning but can also really help those that may not have that voice to share their wonderful story," Summers said.
"We're really excited and hopeful that we can get people along and help many lives."
The Kidney Transplant Center did update its website this week with a lot of important information that may answer some questions these callers may have.
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