This Man's 78-Year-Old Wife Needed a New Kidney -- How He Found Her One Should Brighten Your Day

Jimmie Sue Swilling needed a new kidney and her husband, Larry, wasn’t going to sit around and wait for her name to reach the top of the waiting list.

Larry Swilling seen walking throughout downtown Greenville, talking to people as they walked by (FOX Carolina)

So the South Carolina man decided to be proactive.

See, Jimmie Sue Swilling, 76, was born with only one kidney and she ran into serious complications in December 2012.

They saw a doctor and were told that no one in the Swilling family matched her type. Larry was dissappointed with himself.

"I was hoping it would be me," he said in June. "I'm in good shape. But I'm A+. We have three kids - two boys and a daughter, and they're all A+."

So she was put on a donor waiting list.

However, rather than wait and risk further medical complications, Larry decided to dedicate his free hours to finding a donor for his wife of 56 years.

He spent months on his phone and walking the streets of Anderson County, S.C., wearing a sandwich board carrying both his number and a message that read: “Need kidney 4 wife.”

He even put his phone number and his plea for a kidney on his truck, practically begging people for tips on a possible donor.

A family photo of Larry and Jimmie Sue Swilling (Swillings)

And it appears his dedication has paid off: the Swillings said the Medical University of South Carolina has found a donor, Fox Carolina reported Tuesday.

"I knew it was going to happen because I know him," said Jimmie Sue Swilling. "He wouldn't have stopped until he got me one."

As of this writing, not much is known about the donor, but the Swillings are pretty sure it’s someone who read about their story after it made headlines last year.

"(The donor) retired out of services, and she's in Virginia Beach. That's all we know," said Jimmie Sue:

FOX Carolina 21

The couple will be in Charleston next week for her final testing. Provided there are no further medical complications, the surgery should take place September 12, the Fox report notes.

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(H/T: Gawker). Featured image CBS News.

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