Perfect Match: 24-Year-Old Man Finds Fiancé and New Kidney Through Tinder
Reid Alexander, a 24-year-old man from Colorado, battled kidney disease before meeting 28-year-old Rafael Diaz. The pair matched on Tinder in August 2020 and are now married — and Diaz donated a kidney to his new husband.
Shortly after they started dating, Alexander shared that he suffered from Alport syndrome, a genetic disease that causes damage to blood vessels in the kidneys, among many other symptoms.
In Sept. 2020, just weeks after starting to date, Alexander had to undergo surgery to prepare for dialysis, so Diaz stepped in to help Alexander recover. “He stayed at the hospital for me and drove me home and everything,” Alexander told USA Today. “He’s the first person to ever get me flowers, so, yeah, I kind of knew he was the one.”
The couple got engaged in February and married in April, keeping the ceremony small so they could pay for their surgeries, but they plan to have a larger celebration in a year or two.
Shortly after the wedding, Diaz began testing to learn whether he could donate a kidney to his husband. That is when they got the good news: he was a perfect match.
Their hospital in Colorado initially told the couple that they would not be able to perform the surgery, so they went to doctors in Alexander’s home state of Indiana. In early June, the team at IU Health told the couple that they would be able to complete the surgeries, which took place in August — almost exactly a year after matching on the dating app.
Alexander said he has recovered well and quickly, but still has some limitations. Diaz is happy to see his husband’s condition improve. “I’m just so glad. I’m so glad to see Reid all day and see how good he’s doing,” said Diaz.
“It was the best experience of our life,” said Diaz, who noted he would do it all over again if given the chance. “It’s just incredible.”
Image source: CNN
Previous
