Daughter gives dad gift of life
Daughter gives dad gift of life
By JENNA McMURRAY, QMI Agency
CALGARY - Saad Fahssi isn't sure what to get his daughter for Christmas -- as far as he can tell, there's nothing comparable to what she's giving him.
"Most parents get a box of socks or underwear or a tie, but this year I'm getting a kidney," said Fahssi, 52.
"It's my second chance at life."
In 1992, Fahssi took his two small children, son Elias and daughter Rhekia, from Calgary to his native Morocco to visit family.
It's believed he contracted a parasite there that destroyed both his kidneys, forcing him to spend 18-months on dialysis in Calgary until an organ was donated to him.
But doctors warned Fahssi it wasn't a perfect match and 12 years later his third kidney failed.
For the last four years, he has been back on dialysis, which simply keeps him alive, but doesn't let him truly live.
His daughter, who has watched her dad fight for his life for nearly all of hers, became adamant about helping him.
For years, Fahssi denied her pleas, saying he struggled with the idea of accepting help from his own children.
"I've always thought it should be the other way, I should be doing something like this for my kids, they shouldn't have to do it for me," he said.
But when Rhekia, 19, became an adult, she kept insisting on giving her dad a kidney, which has been deemed a match for him.
Finally a conversation between dad and daughter forced Fahssi to let go of his pride.
"She said to me 'I want you to be around a little bit longer because one day I want you to walk me down the aisle,'" said Fahssi.
"That really pulled my heart strings."
Now the two are set for surgery Dec. 8, which Fahssi says will save his life -- allowing him to return to work after a year off, being able to travel again without having to arrange for dialysis in another country, and eating what he likes.
Rhekia, a student in the apprenticeship culinary arts program at SAIT Polytechnic and cook at a downtown restaurant, said she wants to make the donation to her dad because he's always been a positive influence in her life and taught her to stay optimistic, even in the worst of times.
"He's my dad and I love him," she said, adding she also wants him around when she opens her first restaurant.
She said she's not too scared about the surgery itself, she's just nervous to see how her dad's body accepts her organ.
Fahssi, who will now have four kidneys in his body, said though he's always been proud of his kids, this demonstrates a new level of selflessness.
"When I think about it, all I can do it cry," he said.
jenna.mcmurray@sunmedia.ca