Georgia couple makes perfect kidney transplant match

LAMAR COUNTY, Ga. - Sometimes the very thing you're looking for is right within your reach. That was the life-saving coincidence for a Barnesville, Georgia man in need of a new kidney. 

Doctors diagnosed Victor Gotell with kidney disease nearly three years ago, and they placed him on dialysis. He told FOX 5 he searched for a donor, including testing five relatives for matches.

In the end, he learned Sharon, his wife of nearly 15 years, was the perfect match.

"The kidney was with me all along. I didn't even know it," Gotell said. "I knew, if I did get one from her, it was going to be a good one because she exercises, eats right and drinks lots of water."

Sharon Gotell said she was overjoyed to hear about the match.

"He has always given to me because he is just that kind of a person,"Sharon said. "So, for God to use me to give him a kidney that was like God showing out. He is really doing his thing."

The couple said surgery went well.

Gotell, a chef and church deacon, told FOX 5 he looks forward to getting back to his catering business and serving his church and community.