SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC/Gray News) – Meeting a salesman at a Georgia furniture store turned out to be a lifesaving moment for a woman who would soon need a kidney donor.
Dayna Cohen’s story starts at a Rooms to Go furniture store in Savannah, Georgia. She was on the market for a chair when she met salesman Jake Rowland, WTOC reports.
“I just happened to be at the front door when she came in. So, it was cool to meet that way. It was really almost fate,” Rowland said.
The two hit it off, bonding over the state of New York, and became fast friends. They kept in touch through social media.
Six months later, Cohen’s health took a turn for the worse, and she was told her kidneys were failing. She needed a transplant.
Cohen says she knew the numbers on the transplant list and thought there was no way she would find someone. Almost 90,000 people are waiting and hoping for a kidney, according to the National Transplant Database.
But Cohen started dialysis and a website to search for a match. Months went by with no luck. Everyone that tested came back ineligible.
“I hit rock bottom. There were days when I would cry to my poor cats saying nobody loves me, nobody cares, nobody is going to get tested,” Cohen said.
Little did she know, Rowland, her furniture salesman turned friend, was getting tested to see if he was eligible.
“You don’t get to be told who is testing for you,” Cohen said.
When the results came back, just like that day in the furniture store, it was a perfect match.
“I’ve always thought that if you can help somebody, you should,” Rowland said. “It was that day in Rooms to Go. Definitely was meant to be.”
“It’s obviously saved my life, but it’s changed my life in so many ways,” Cohen said. “I didn’t just get a kidney. I gained a family in the process.”
The two just celebrated their six months post-operation. They’re currently planning a trip back to Cohen’s hometown, so she can introduce her friends and family to the salesman who saved her life.
To find out more about being a kidney donor, click here.
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