Benton police officers become inseparable through kidney donation

Yahoo

22-04-2025

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Police officers sign up for the badge to put their lives on the line whenever necessary, but being a living organ donor is an extra badge of honor.
Benton Police Sergeant Brett Davidson is used to being the person people look to for help in an emergency, but when he learned he had end-stage kidney failure, he was the one helpless.
'Kind of a surprise to me because everything was great for me and then it wasn't,' Davidson said.
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He needed backup, and Captain Ronnie Davidson was the first responder.
'Growing up, I worked off of his example. I think I get that willingness to help and serve others from him, and he just did what came naturally,' Bretty Davidson stated.
Ronnie and Brett are not just brothers in blue. They are father and son.
'I see so much of myself in him, and now I really am in there,' Ronnie Davidson said with a laugh.
Ronnie could share his spare kidney with his son because their blood type and antibodies matched. UAMS abdominal transplant surgeon Dr. Raj Patel stated that direct donations from living donors have lower risk and better, longer-lasting outcomes.
'If they are going through a non-direct donation, we have to line up multiple donors at different hospitals all across the country. That takes time,' Patel explained.
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Not everyone has enough time. Each day, 17 people die waiting for an organ transplant, according to the Health Resources and Services Administration.
'Most people actually don't have a living donor because a lot of the risk factors for kidney failure are genetic,' Patel said.
'I wound up honestly being the lucky one,' Ronnie Davidson added. 'I feel just like I did before. I may even be a little more active, a little more cognizant of my health. If anything, I'm better for it.'
In any emergency or 911 situation, Brett Davidson said you would be lucky if his dad was the one to answer the call.
'There's no scenario where he's not willing to help the person next to him. It means a lot to him to help. I think that's the whole reason we do the job,' Brett Davidson stated.
April is Donate Life Month, and across America, over a hundred thousand men, women, and children are on the national organ transplant waiting list.
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While people can sign up to become organ donors on a driver's license or online, becoming a living organ donor requires extra authorization. More information can be found on UAMSHealth.com.
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