Retired Chicago Firefighter Who Rescued Three Girls from Fire Gets Kidney Donor Thanks to ABC7 I-Team

CHICAGO (WLS) — In February, the ABC7 I-Team met with Patrick McDermott, a retired Chicago firefighter in desperate need of a kidney.

Dozens of ABC7 viewers saw his story and reached out and volunteered to donate their kidney to save his life.

McDermott has now found a kidney donor.

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People from all over the country saw McDermott’s story and were determined to help.

The retired firefighter says a man in Arizona saw the story on social media and wanted to help save his life.

“When I found out, it shocked me,” McDermott said. “I was totally depressed. I felt my mortality. I felt there was nothing I could do but die.”

McDermott dedicated his life to the Chicago Fire Department, spending decades rescuing others.

“This was for saving three kids in a fire off-duty,” McDermott said while looking through his accolades. “They were seven floors up.”

Currently, McDermott finds himself in need of a lifesaver as his kidneys are deteriorating, and none of his relatives, including his wife, are suitable donors. In an effort to find help, he reached out to ABC7, hoping his plea would reach the right ears.

“I pray every night,” McDermott said. “We do two prayers every night, and it’s out of my hands. We have to give it to God.”

After the story aired, people from across the Chicago area and the country called and wrote in, wanting to give McDermott a kidney.

“I’m humbled by it. I’m moved to tears by it,” McDermott said. “The University of Chicago told me in one day they had 50 people call in.”

“I just didn’t realize there were still so many compassionate people around,” said his wife, Carol McDermott. “For someone to offer assistance without even knowing you, it truly feels like a divine intervention.”

A man from Arizona saw the story on social media and reached out to the couple directly. He believed he would be the one to help McDermott.

Previously, he had joined the National Kidney Registry’s Voucher Program, registering as an altruistic kidney donor, meaning he gave his kidney to an unknown recipient. This act allowed him to designate several people to receive priority in finding a matching living donor, and McDermott arranged his list accordingly.

“What he has done is open the door for not only me to get a kidney, but maybe five other people to be moved to the top of the list,” McDermott said.

Weeks later, a living kidney donor was found for McDermott. ABC7 don’t know who that donor is yet, and neither do the McDermotts, but they are grateful to everyone who helped make this possible.

“ABC viewers, from a humble Chicago retired firefighter, thank you is not enough,” McDermott said.

McDermott’s kidney transplant surgery is scheduled for the end of the month at UChicago medicine.

ABC7 will be checking in with him and is wishing him a successful procedure.

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