CANTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. – A Canton Township employee in dire need of a kidney transplant found his perfect match in an unexpected donor, his boss.
Abe Vinitski had worked for the township for about 20 years, and when word got out that he would need a new kidney, colleagues started getting tested to see if they were a positive match.
“His family gave to my family,” said Vinitiski.
He reports to Greg Hohenberger, director of Canton Township Leisure Services. The two have bonded over keeping township parks up to par.
They’ve watched each other become fathers and, ultimately, family men.
It’s the reason Hohenberger took a chance to save Vinitski’s life.
“Knowing what it would be like to be able to help somebody to keep their dad is huge,” said Hohenberger.
Vinitski was diagnosed with diabetes 10 years ago.
Five years ago, his doctor suggested he get prequalified for a kidney donation because it could take time. It wasn’t until last year his condition hit an all-time low.
“In the fall, walking around here, I was not healthy at all,” Vinitski said. “I was going home and sleeping as soon as I got home, things I never do.”
He started dialysis at home, which took 10 to 12 hours daily.
For a father of three, varsity high school softball coach, and the lead for a summer softball tournament, juggling his declining health wasn’t part of the game plan.
To live, he had to make it work.
“When I got home from work at 3 p.m. I had about two hours where I had to start every single day,” Vinitski said. “So if you had errands or things you had to do, you know you’re not going out to dinner. You’re not going out and doing anything.”
Hohenberger said as colleagues, they didn’t know things were that bad until Vinitski mentioned he may need some extra time off because of his health.
Hohenberger was compelled to help.
“My friend had passed away a year ago from breast cancer,” Hohenberger said. “I couldn’t do anything, and that’s such a helpless feeling. This way, I know that I could actually do something, potentially make a difference in somebody’s life.”
Hohenberger said over the course of months, there was a total of about 20 hours of medical screenings.
“Just the willingness to do those tests is a commitment,” Vinitski said. “I mean, he had to go miss work and do different things and even up to the two weeks before they give you a surgery day.”
Hohenberger said:
“I had so many people ask me, ‘What if?’ ‘What if one of your kids needs a kidney or what if this or what if?’ There are so many what-ifs, and I’m like, ‘Well, what I know right now is that I can help Abe.’”
Hohenberger says even if his children would need a kidney, years from now, there’s no guarantee he would be a match. So he continued to test until March 3 finally came.
“It got real when we both got to the hospital at whatever 5:30 a.m.,” Vinitski said.
Hohenberger will always remember the short moment before surgery, but what he cherishes the most is having Vinitski there now.
“It’s great to see him,” Hohenberger said. “He doesn’t have a port coming out of him anymore, and you could always see through his shirt that he had the port there.”
“I feel like it might be six or seven years since I felt this good,” Vinitski said.
To put it in perspective, Vinitski said doctors told him his kidney function was eight out of 100 around the time he started dialysis, and now, after the surgery, there’s a significant improvement.
“I’m at 75%, which for my age that is above the average,” Vinitski said.
That’s all that matters to Hohenberger.
“It’s not an easy process,” Hohenberger said. “It’s not pain-free. It’s very hard, but it’s very rewarding too to know that you made such a difference in somebody’s life.”
“It’s the ultimate selfless act,” Vinitski said. “It truly is. My family will never be able to thank him enough.”
Both men are still in recovery but wanted to share their stories in hopes it will encourage others to get tested to be someone’s match, especially because April is National Donate Life Month.