For Steve Schneider, a diagnosis of end-stage renal disease - and later kidney failure - imposed harsh challenges on his daily life. 

Steve, a 70–year-old retired health care executive from Cedar Grove, continued to work out and spend time with his family, but he had to fit his leisure time around three weekly sessions of dialysis that ran for three and a half hours on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. 

He and his wife altered their diets, and to ensure Steve kept his fluid intake to 32 fluid ounces a day, he drank his beverages from a sippy cup.

“Going out to restaurants, particularly for the first six months to a year, was complicated. I made people miserable," he joked. 

The Beginning of Steve’s Journey

Steve was transferred to Hackensack Meridian Hackensack University Medical Center for its transplant program, and began the battery of tests needed to determine that he was a viable candidate for organ donation. While Steve lost about 50 pounds and had no trouble scheduling most of the tests, there was one daunting hurdle.

"I always hid from the colonoscopy,” he said. “I probably dragged things out and frustrated the nurse coordinator by how resistant I was. I made up a lot of games in my mind. I'm not proud of it, but that's what happened."

A Thanksgiving to Remember

Steve powered through his fears, and received a call last Thanksgiving Eve while preparing a turkey - doctors found him a kidney, and they could perform the transplant the next day. 

"I didn't believe it. It was real. It was true. It was a miracle,” he said. 

The operation was a success, and after a quick dialysis session performed after the procedure, Steve hasn’t looked back. After 22 months of dialysis, Steve was home free - and extremely grateful for the care he received. 

"The first month after the surgery, I didn’t stop crying,” he said. “I probably was fist-bumping everyone too many times. The team is fantastic, the providers are great, the facilities are beautiful."

A Heartfelt Gesture After Receiving a Kidney

In gratitude for his exceptional care, Steve has added the Organ Transplant Patient Assistance Fund at Hackensack to his quarterly giving, and a fundraiser he spearheaded has raised more than $6,000 so far. 

“We are incredibly grateful for Steve’s generosity,” said Michael Goldstein, M.D., FACS, director of the Division of Organ Transplantation at Hackensack. 

“Thanks to donors like Steve, our Organ Transplant Patient Assistance Fund can provide relief to organ recipients who might face unexpected challenges after receiving the care they need.”

Life After a Kidney Transplant - And Without Dialysis

Steve is looking forward to spending more time with his granddaughter, who was born in January, and taking vacations without the burden of planning around dialysis sessions. 

"My life was very compartmentalized the last two years,” he said. “Sunday, Tuesdays and Thursdays I had to go to bed early so I could wake up at 5 a.m. for my dialysis appointments."

Steve credits his doctor who performed the transplant, Samuel Sultan, M.D., and every team member at Hackensack he interacted with. 

To learn how you can help support Hackensack University Medical Center or its Organ Transplant Patient Assistant Fund, visit GiveHMH.org/HUMC.