Kidney transplant binds K.C. couple as wedding nears

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Ten months after his girlfriend gave him one of her kidneys, Travis Spire-Sweet is going strong and making plans to marry the woman he credits with saving his life.

The 30-year-old Kansas City acupuncturist didn't know what it felt like to have a fully functioning kidney until now. Taesha Benson, 34, made it possible, donating the organ last February.

"It's like someone turned on the light," he told The Kansas City Star. "I feel better than I ever have in my entire life."

Both have returned to an active life that includes rock climbing and marathon running as they prepare for a spring wedding and honeymoon on a tropical island.

Benson decided just months into their relationship that she would give Spire-Sweet a kidney so he could live a longer, healthier life. His kidney disease was caused by a birth defect, and he was living with one kidney that was deteriorating when the two met through an online dating service.

After Benson, who works for a security software company in Overland Park, Kan., announced her decision to become an organ donor, some people couldn't understand how she could give Spire-Sweet a kidney when they weren't even engaged.

"They'd say, 'You'd better get a ring for this,"' she said.

Spire-Sweet proposed in May in front of thousands of Kansas City Royals fans at Kauffman Stadium. He had thrown out the first pitch -- which Benson was supposed to catch but missed -- during an organ donor awareness night.

In video footage of the proposal, Benson's eyes widen as Spire-Sweet drops to one knee. She laughs, cries and then says "yes."

"Every emotion came out," Benson said. "It was just a daze."

Her recovery from the transplant took a few months after she had a rare post-surgery complication that caused fluid to build up in her abdomen. Now, she's training for a half-marathon in February in Portland, Ore., where she lived before moving to Kansas City.

Spire-Sweet does CrossFit, goes rock climbing and hosts a health-related podcast. Earlier this year he said he never expected to live past 30.

For the more than 99,000 Americans on the waiting list for a kidney, Spire-Sweet points to his own experience and hopes it raises awareness of the need for donors.

"Don't give up," he said.

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Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com