Woman Goes On Tinder Date, Ends Up Donating Kidney to Stranger

Jennifer Thomas was trying to get over a breakup when she swiped right on a dude named Rich O’Dea, who was also nursing the wounds of a relationship gone wrong. The two went out and really connected. They connected so well, in fact, that only several short months after the date, Thomas is donating a kidney to O’Dea’s friend’s wife.

How do you get from a blind date to one less kidney? According to The Tampa Bay Times, O’Dea told Thomas about his friend, Scott Bragan, while they were on the date—as well as Bragan’s wife Erika, who suffers from polycystic kidney disease, a serious condition that could lead to kidney failure.

When told that Bragan, the mother of two children, was facing a lifetime of dialysis, Thomas knew that she had to do something. But instead of donating to the Polycystic Kidney Foundation or running a marathon (both reasonable options), she decided to see if one of her own kidneys would be a match for Erika Bragan. Surprisingly, it was.

Less than a week from today, on November 18th, Thomas is set to go under the knife to save Bragan’s life: her kidney function has fallen to five percent.

The only sad thing about this story is that, unlike another couple that got married after an anonymous kidney donation, Jennifer Thomas and Rich O’Dea didn’t end up together. They’re apparently still good friends, but that’s really going to mess up the storyline of the “based on true events” Hallmark movie that we all know will eventually be made.