PARSONSBURG, Md. (AP) - Kim Robinson was browsing Facebook one afternoon when something caught his eye.
A friend of his - younger than Robinson - had recently passed away. Robinson hadn’t spoken to the person in several years, but knew he suffered from kidney issues.
As he looked down to his side, Robinson took a breath and thought to himself, “That could have been me.”
The father of three had also dealt with kidney failure, and less than two years ago, he was told he would need a new one or suffer the same fate as his friend.
But Robinson was lucky - he found a suitor and has spent the last five months recovering from surgery. After much rehab, the Parsonsburg resident is starting to return to his normal life.
However, that life might have been taken away had it not been for Robinson’s 20-year-old son, Matthew.
A track runner for Frostburg State University and former Wicomico High School athlete, Matthew Robinson made the decision to donate his kidney to his father last fall. The junior missed nearly the entire indoor track season and the bulk of outdoor.
But just four months later, Matthew Robinson was back on the track, running in the Capital Athletic Conference Championship.
As he looks at his son today, Kim Robinson can’t help but form an ear-to-ear smile, thinking about all his son risked to save his father’s life.
“It makes me so much more proud of him,” Kim Robinson said. “How lucky am I? I’m taking it just one day at a time now and doing what I’m supposed to do. But I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him.”
“It was going to be me”
Matthew Robinson said he first learned about his father’s kidney problems during the second semester of his freshman year.
Still making the transition into college, the runner told his parents to keep him in the loop and let him know if there was anything he could do.
But as time passed, Kim Robinson’s condition worsened. Knowing he would need a new kidney, Kim Robinson reached out through Facebook and received close to 10 responses from individuals who would be willing to donate.
However, both the doctors and family wanted the donation to be a perfect fit - no one was willing to risk Kim Robinson’s life.
His wife went and got all three of their children tested, discovering each would be a good match.
But as soon as Matthew Robinson heard what was happening, without hesitation, the college student said, “I’m going to do it.”
“It was going to be me. They can test anyone else, but it’s going to be me,” Matthew Robinson said. “I trusted God, knowing He would do His thing. I’m pretty much super healthy, don’t have anything wrong with me and I’m super physically fit. I didn’t see why I wouldn’t be the one to do it.”
As the procedure approached, Matthew Robinson’s mother made sure both he and his father were taking the steps necessary to undergo the surgery.
While Kim Robinson, who was now away from work, spent the bulk of his time doing dialysis and taking medication, Matthew Robinson still had a semester of schoolwork and track team that was depending on him.
Not wanting to make a big deal of things, the runner opted not to tell his teammates, but did share the news with his coaches.
It was decided that Matthew Robinson would compete in Frostburg’s first indoor meet in December, but after that, his season was over.
“Like many of those donations, there’s that period where you’re not sure what’s going to happen,” said Dale Luy, Frostburg’s head track coach. “Matt was a little concerned about the fact that it would have an impact on his ability to compete. He had certain goals, and he understood it was a major decision, but it wasn’t a hard decision for him because it was the right one.”
“He was pushing for me”
Family was Matthew Robinson’s biggest priority, but the Frostburg track team had become part of that throughout his three years with the program.
Though he wanted to come back full strength - competing in the hurdles and sprints - he was more concerned with how his absence would affect his team’s success.
“I didn’t know what would happen to me physically, but I knew I’d eventually be able to run again,” Matthew Robinson said. “The recovery time was six weeks, and I thought that was a short amount of time, so I felt good about it.”
With some time to spare, the possibility of pushing the surgery back to the summer emerged, giving the junior a chance to compete the entire season.
But seeing his father suffer every day was too much for Matthew Robinson.
He wanted to get the surgery done as soon as possible.
With everything booked, Matthew and Kim Robinson traveled to John’s Hopkins for scheduled surgery on Jan. 2.
Neither slept the night before, but once the time came for the operation, both men felt at peace and confident that everything would be fine.
“I was excited,” Matthew Robinson said. “It was nervous excitement. I wanted the doctor to take pictures of my kidney, and he said he showed me X-ray. I was really curious about everything. I did feel a little scared knowing they’d cut me open, but I knew was in the best hands.”
Sitting in the waiting room, Matthew Robinson was called in first, with his father following behind an hour later.
The two men didn’t see each other until the day after, but were told the surgery had been a success.
Finally finding the strength to move, Matthew Robinson made his way to his father’s hospital room, and once the two made eye contact, huge smiles flashed across their faces.
“He is just full of energy, because there’s no way I could have walked down that hallway,” Kim Robinson said. “I was shocked, because I really wasn’t expecting him. I was excited and glad that he was pushing it for me. He was ready to leave the hospital two days later - he was ready to go back to his team.”
Back to work
Once the two were released from the hospital, Matthew Robinson returned to Frostburg while Kim Robinson went back to the Eastern Shore.
Though they talked over the phone, the two men didn’t see each other again until the Capital Athletic Conference Championship in May, hosted at Salisbury University.
But what neither man knew was that Matthew Robinson would be competing in the event.
However, the junior first had to start the rehab process - something that was frustrating at times to an athlete who was used to running everywhere.
For six weeks, Matthew Robinson worked his way back to “everyday living” with the help of his friends and coaches.
Finally, on Feb. 14, the track runner was starting to feel like his old self.
“We purposely told him to stay home,” Luy said with a chuckle. “He still came in a week earlier. He didn’t practice, but he was coming back. He was chomping at the bit to compete. He started stretching, walking over hurdles, doing some drill work, and once his doctors gave him clearance, he continued to progress.”
With no chance at competing during the indoor season, Matthew Robinson shifted his focus to outdoor, training almost every day to get back on the track.
He and his coaches decided to stay away from hurdles during the early stages, not wanting to risk an injury. However, when the time came, the junior was used during Frostburg’s relays, and ended up competing in four meets. Shortly after, he returned to the hurdles.
But in three weeks of the outdoor season, Matthew Robinson qualified for the CAC Championships in the 110-meter hurdles and the 400-meter hurdles.
“All he’s done, coming back and running after all that, all I can do is praise him,” Kim Robinson said. “He’s a pusher - he always wants to be on the go. We can tell him to relax, but he’s not going to do it. Come April, I knew he was good.”
During the championship, Matthew Robinson didn’t record the numbers he was hoping, but the junior still placed in the top 10.
For his efforts, the Delmarva native was awarded the conference’s Medal of Inspiration, which is given to an athlete that has persevered through extraordinary circumstances.
While he was thankful for the honor, Matthew Robinson was more focused on improving his time and working his way up the rankings. But with one final collegiate season remaining, the runner is confident he’ll eventually achieve his goals.
“I thought I was going to be able to do more than I did,” Matthew Robinson said. “It really took a lot mentally. My times were slower, and I really beat myself up. I didn’t get back to where I wanted to, but I’ve come a long way. I’ve made peace with it and am now thinking about next year.”
“I love my boy”
With his season over, Matthew Robinson made his way over to his family, giving a hug to everyone in attendance - including his father.
Now back at home for the summer, the two are still going through the rehab process, with Matthew Robinson often joking to his father about taking care of his kidney.
“I can be hard on him now since it’s (my kidney),” Matthew Robinson said. “When he was eating not as healthy as he is now, I’d say, ’My kidney wants something good, give it to it.’”
But the two said the entire journey has strengthened their relationship as father and son, with both having a better appreciation for how valuable life can be.
“We all go through something for a reason, and this was to bring the whole family even closer,” Matthew Robinson said. “I never thought about life or death, but I’ve always trusted in God - he was the real rock behind this. I know however He plans it out, it will work.”
When he thinks back on his decision to donate a kidney, Matthew Robinson realizes it looks like a heroic move, but to the 20-year-old, it was the only choice he had.
While Kim Robinson says he never wants to go through something like kidney surgery again, his son said he would donate another in a heartbeat if it meant saving the life of someone he loved - that is, if he could.
But the experience is something the two will bond over for the rest of their lives, joking more than anything about a part of Matthew Robinson being inside his father.
At the end of the day, Kim Robinson said his son’s donation was the greatest gift anyone could give a father.
“He’s a good kid,” Kim Robinson said. “I love my boy. He’s just a great person.”
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Information from: The Daily Times of Salisbury, Md., http://www.delmarvanow.com/
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