West Valley man who gave kidney to mother raising awareness for minority organ donations

A West Valley kidney donor is sharing his experience to promote National Minority Donor Awareness Month.

Aug 28, 2025, 1:23 PM Updated: Aug 29, 2025, 11:50 am

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PHOENIX — A West Valley kidney donor is sharing his experience to promote National Minority Donor Awareness Month.

Jeff Webster of Buckeye learned earlier this year that his mother Connie — who had been living for 15 years with diabetes — needed a lifesaving kidney transplant.

Testing was done on both Webster and his father to find a match, with the former receiving a positive result.

“When I found out I was a match, there was no question in my mind that I was going to do it,” Webster said in a press release from Dignity Health this week. “The first thing I did was Google ‘life after transplant.’ I read that I would most likely go on to live a very normal life.”

Webster and his mother underwent the procedure at the Norton Thoracic Institute, which is part of Phoenix’s Dignity Health St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center. The kidney donor said the surgery was a success and his mother’s recovery is promising.

“I sometimes forget I even donated an organ because it hasn’t physically impacted my day-to-day life,” Webster said. “I encourage everyone in the community to become an organ donor.”

Why is there a need for National Minority Donor Awareness Month?

Kidney disease affects minority groups in the United States at a disproportionate rate.

“Being able to have diversity in the donor pool will allow for better genetic matching,” Gabriel Quiroz, kidney transplant coordinator for the Norton Thoracic Institute, said in video clip provided by the hospital.

Kidneys can be donated by either living or dead donors. Living donors — who are required to be healthy adults over the age of 18 — can be harder to find but produce lower rejection rates.

“The basis of compatibility is really just blood type compatibility. However, longevity of organs is something that we want for our recipients, to be able to have a long life with their organ transplant,” Quiroz said. “And therefore, having somebody that’s a good genetic match through a cultural basis would be the best match to be able to allow for that longevity.”

For Webster, seeing his mother get the chance to have more time with him and her grandchildren has been worth the experience.

“Watching my mother bond with her grandsons is one of my biggest joys,” he said. “The gift of organ donation made this possible.”