There are a lot of special moments that can only be shared between a father and his daughter — a father daughter dance, a walk down the aisle.
But for San Diegans Bob Platt and his daughter, Erika, their bond just became so much deeper than just a title.
“The love I have for this man is like no other,” Erika said about her 78-year-old father. “My first love since the day I was born.” She said he is her superhero, and her mentor.
Bob and Erika have a bond not many fathers and daughters will ever share.
“I knew in my mind there was no stopping me, it was a no brainer,” she said.
Erika donated her kidney to her father who was just placed on dialysis.
But being the protective and caring father that he is, he tried to stop her. It didn’t work.
“As parents, we didn’t want our child to go through that process, we didn’t want her to donate a kidney. Subsequent to that, she was so adamant,” Platt laughed.
“There actually wasn’t a doubt in my mind that I was not going to donate if I was able to,” Erika said.
The two underwent surgery at the same time at UC San Diego Health as soon as Erika found out she was a match.
An emotional video taken after their surgery shows the two of them seeing each other for the first time, but with a laugh from Erika.
“Did you hear, you got my brain, not my kidney, sorry about your luck,” she joked with her dad.
“It’s a miracle,” Bob said during an interview with FOX 5/KUSI on Father’s Day.
“I know the sacrifices that he has given me throughout the years, and it’s a lot. The fact that he is still here throughout the years and loves me more than anything, I knew that my kids needed to have their grandfather in their lives,” she said.
“I couldn’t spend as much time with him because he was in dialysis,” Lucas, Bob’s grandson said. He’s looking forward to having his “Boppie” back at his sporting events cheering.
“Everyday to me is Father’s Day now,” Platt said.
“They were both motived and enthusiastic, which made the process of getting them to transplant very smooth. Post-op, they were still both so excited and grateful. She was focused on him doing well, and he was focused on her,” said Dr. Jennifer Berumen with UC San Diego Health.
Studies show that many patients wait up to 15 years for a kidney donation, and there’s more than 100,000 people on a waiting list for a kidney donation.
Erika hopes her story will inspire more people to become living donors.
Visit UC San Diego Health’s website to learn how to donate.
Source: FOX5SanDiego