MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WTVF) — A Murfreesboro family is delivering an urgent message tonight, seeking help for their 14-year-old son. It's a story about a kid with a positive spirit and a loving family that will do anything to help him.
Noah Garcia, 14, had his eyes fixed on a TV screen, furiously playing a video game in his brand-new room. That room's a pretty grand Christmas gift. Dad Eli and mom Melissa Garcia of Murfreesboro have just converted a space in the garage into a room for Noah.
Forrest talks with Noah's family and how interested donors can get in touch with his family in the player above.
"I have a big TV, a nice bed, which we made yesterday, and a football field on one of my walls, which I'm pretty excited about," Noah smiled.
"I told him when he goes to school, I'm going to be in there hanging out!" laughed Eli. "He's really good at video games. He plays Madden all day. I used to be the champ but not anymore. I'm easily beaten now."
"Very true!" Noah chimed in.
"I kinda let him win to be honest," Eli said.
"He claims he's the best, but that's not true!" Noah said.
"He's just a typical kid," Eli continued. "He's a really good kid. I always feel bad for him for what he's had to go through."
Noah's struggles began before he was born.
"He had something wrong with his kidney," Melissa said. "It looked like there was something wrong with his bladder as well. He had hydronephrosis."
Before kindergarten, one of Noah's kidneys was removed. His problems continued.
"He's got one kidney that barely works," Eli said.
"It's not functioning all the way, it's at 15%," Noah continued. "It's slowly failing. Blood type is B or O."
"He's on the transplant list right now," said Eli. "As of last Monday, he's officially on it. There's a potential donor, but that person's at the beginning stage of the process. We're just waiting to see what happens."
"I'm not a match," said Melissa. "My husband can't be a donor, and his siblings can't be donors. We need somebody to take the first step to see if they could be a match."
"Sometimes I forget he's just a 14-year-old little boy because of the surgeries he's had to go through," Eli said. "It's tough. No parent wants to see their kid go through that."
During this tough Christmas season, a family's been there for Noah all the way. They're doing social media pushes, including a QR code for donation information set up at kidney4noahjack on Instagram.
Beyond that, Noah's new room, this Christmas present, was built so that after surgery Noah wouldn't have to go up and down stairs for a while. It's a powerful gift as Noah waits for another gift.
"All that matters to us is making sure that Noah gets another kidney," said Eli.
"The whole family is supportive of Noah," Melissa added. "We are there for each other."
