This story is republished with permission from The Birmingham Times
As a longtime Birmingham firefighter and now Chief of the Birmingham City Fire Rescue Department (BFRS), Cory D. Moon is used to saving lives. But one life he saved is special to his family — that of his brother Rodney, he said.
The act of selflessness didn’t come at a call to a city neighborhood, it came at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Hospital, where Cory donated a kidney to his older brother 22 years ago.
“My brother was diagnosed with kidney disease [while he was attending the University of Alabama]and his situation got worse over the years,” Cory, 45, told The Birmingham Times. “He was about to start dialysis right before we found out we were a good match.
“Dialysis is a type of treatment that… [removes] extra fluids and waste products from [a person’s] blood when the kidneys are unable,” according to the National Kidney Foundation (NKF).
“[Because we] performed a transplant,… [Rodney] he never had to go on dialysis,” Cory said.
Held this week in The Magic City, the Transplant Games of America is the 33rd annual celebration for recipients and living donors — like Rodney and Cory — as well as donor families, individuals on transplant waiting lists, caregivers and transplant professionals.
“It’s a big deal for the city of Birmingham to even host these games, and an even bigger deal to have so many donors and so many recipients in one place at the same time,” Cory said. “I will see some of my fellow brothers and sisters coming to the city of Birmingham.
“Adult Man Move”
Rodney, 48, described his younger brother’s decision to donate a kidney as a “grown man move”.
“When you’re a big brother, you always look at your little brother as a little brother,” Rodney told The Times. “As a grown man, I have gained a certain respect for him. That helped me bond with him as a man, as a brother, not just a little brother who was always watching us and wanted to be one of the big guys. It’s hard for me to put into words.’
When it came to donating an organ to his biological brother, there was “zero hesitation,” Cory said.
“I had just become a firefighter a year before my kidney transplant, so I wasn’t sure if I would be able to continue as a firefighter or continue working,” he recalled. “I didn’t care at all. All I cared about was if my brother was going to be okay. I didn’t think twice about it.”
Cory added: “The gift of giving someone life is priceless, it didn’t have to be his brother to be a donor. There is no downside to saving a life. … Think about the outcome and how you can save someone’s life just by donating that organ.”
Rodney and his mother wondered what it would mean for Cory to become a donor. After all, the younger sibling stood at the beginning of his career in the BFRS.
“I remember my mom and I thinking how [Cory] will it be affected?” Rodney said. “Would they put him out of the ropes? [lower your own mass down a rope], carrying bodies and doing all the physical things firefighters normally do? That’s the part he loved.
“We got a response back that it would not be affected. He would have full duty in the fire department. He was fully committed before we even got an answer. … He gave me another level of respect for him, aside from being a little brother.”
Achieving goals
The Moon brothers grew up in Birmingham’s West End in the Central Park community and came of age in the 1980s.
“There was no cable TV, mom wouldn’t let you out when it was extremely hot until the sun went down, and you weren’t allowed to go in and out of doors to get some air,” Rodney recalled. “I remember we had a house across the street that had an emergency and the fire department stopped. … We heard fire sirens and saw trucks pull up in front of the house. … We looked out the window and [Cory] he told me, ‘I’m going to be a fireman one day.’ He never chose another profession. He never deviated from those words.”
“He fully embraced the idea of becoming a firefighter at a young age. … It just scares me that he was so focused on what he said he wanted to do so young,” Rodney said.
Cory also remembers that day vividly. “The fire happened when I was 10, but I knew I wanted to be a firefighter since I was five,” he said. “The firefighters actually took the time to talk to me after putting out the emergency…and that fascinated me as a little boy. As I got older, this desire continued to grow. The first job I had was at a Food Fair [supermarket] around the corner from my house in Five Points [area]; it is now the Birmingham Public Library. It was right across the street from the fire station, so when I was 15 I saw those people walking in and out. [my] desire [to become a firefighter] to be even stronger.”
“I was lucky to have good mentors, [too]. … I stayed focused on who and what I wanted to be and I was able to achieve my goals,” added Cory, who joined BFRS in March 2001. He was appointed by Mayor Randall Woodfin in October 2019 and sworn in in February 2020. .
“Something is wrong”
Rodney remembers being diagnosed with kidney disease in 1995 [attending University of Alabama]and I started experiencing symptoms of kidney failure,” he said. “I experienced swelling in my legs and that was an indicator for my mum, who has always been in the medical field. … She looked at my legs and said, “You’re retaining fluid. Something is wrong.”
Doctors had Rodney take a 24-hour urine test, which can help determine how well the kidneys are working by measuring how well they clear the blood of proteins, hormones and other chemical compounds, such as too much creatinine can be a sign of a possible kidney problem.
After receiving the results of a 24-hour urine test, Rodney was referred to a nephrologist, a doctor who specializes in treating kidney disease, who diagnosed him with focal sclerosis. The “focal” part, he said, meant “it was localized to my kidneys and it didn’t spread.”
“My nephrologist was at Princeton Hospital and they were able to slow my kidney failure for about five years,” Rodney said. “I was able to graduate [from Alabama in 1997]pledge [Omega Psi Phi fraternity, Incorporated], Beta Eta Chapter]and doing a lot of other things. I was normal.”
That was until 2001 or 2002, “when I started failing,” he said.
“Even closer as a family”
Enter his younger brother. “To start, I had to stay a day or two in the hospital to do the matching part to decide if we were a match,” Cory recalled.
Compatibility is determined by blood group, tissue type and cross-check. The Moon brothers were a good match,” and we performed the operation [on May 1, 2002]Cory said.
“We both went [into the hospital] the same day,” he added. “I don’t remember how long the operation was, but I remember waking up and being wheeled down to his room because the first thing I asked was, ‘How’s my brother?’ They took my bed down to his room to see him.”
Cory said he couldn’t put into words how much it meant to donate an organ to his brother.
“It was just him and me, so we were always close,” Cory said. “The fact that we share this special anniversary has made our bond even closer than it already was. It’s hard to put into words how much it brought us together because we come from a close family. Obviously I love my brother, but this has brought us even closer as a family.’
After the surgery, Rodney was “up and walking the next day,” he said. “I’m calling [Cory’s] ‘bionic’ kidneys,” Rodney added. “He never really put anything in his body that would harm him over time: no steroids, no alcohol, no drug abuse. It was in perfect condition and the firemen processed it and got it into shape. … [My brother] he was in the best shape of his life and I am a fan of that health.”
“My hero”
Every May 1, the Moon brothers commemorate Transplant Day. “We usually reach out to each other and send a reminder and say ‘Congratulations’ and ‘Happy Anniversary,’ so it’s low-key,” Cory said. “We remember and commemorate that day because it is such a special time for us.
“I wouldn’t be who I am if it wasn’t for my big brother,” he continued. “My brother is my idol. I wanted to go to college because my brother went to college. I wanted to play sports because my brother played sports. I wanted to get good grades because my brother got good grades. … That’s why kidney donation never occurred to me.”
Rodney has gone on to a successful business career as a senior program manager at technology giant Amazon, as a real estate broker and property manager, and as the owner with his wife, Karmen, of the recently opened Bruster’s Real Ice Cream franchise in Trussville, Alabama.
“I owe a lot of my energy to Cora because…I [don’t think I would have been able] doing it all on dialysis,” Rodney said. “I [might not have been] he could do anything I could do. I’ve worked multiple jobs… and that takes energy.”
In fact, Rodney said his kidneys work better than the rest of his body. “I thank God every day that my kidneys are working,” he said. “It works better than a lot of my original body parts.” … I thank God for [Cory] be my hero.”
Birmingham is hosting the 2024 Transplant Games from July 5-10, where thousands will gather to honor those who have given the gift of life and raise awareness about organ, eye and tissue donation and transplantation. For more information about the Transplant Games of America, visit transplantgamesofamerica.org.