Minnesota Soccer Coach Donates Kidney to Player’s Mother

By this point, the positive and negative effects of social media are pretty well understood by the general public, especially after a prolonged “pandemic era” that left many people with little else to do outside of scrolling through their news feeds.

But for as much as these platforms can be sounding boards for ignorance, intolerance and other societal impediments, they can also provide the setting for some amazing – even life-saving – happenings.

Just ask Cleofe Zerna.

It’s very possible, maybe even likely, that Cleofe would not be alive today had it not been for a Facebook “friend” request. And while that seemingly inconsequential connection served as the turning point in the unbelievable story of how her life was saved, it should be noted that the event that set everything into motion was highly improbable in its own right.

In late September of 2020, one of Cleofe’s three daughters, Rheana, then a senior on the St. Michael-Albertville (STMA) (Minnesota) High School soccer team, scored a goal from midfield – a 50- to 60-yard kick depending on the size of the pitch – that clinched a 1-1 draw in a match against Eden Prairie High School. Adding to the drama was the fact that Rheana was a defender, a position that rarely produces goals.

STMA varsity head coach Megan Johnson was eager to see a replay of the highlight, and knew that Rheana’s father, Cleofe’s husband, Julius, often recorded games on video from the stands.

“I just thought it would be easier to get it from him,” Johnson said. “So, I just said (to Rheana), ‘hey, did your dad get the video of your goal?’ and she said, “my mom has it on Facebook, just go find her.’ I did that when I got home, saw the goal, and never thought anything more of it.”

Little did she know that “friending” Cleofe on Facebook would link the two women together forever.

In August 2016, Cleofe was diagnosed with Stage 3 IgA nephropathy, an autoimmune kidney disease that intensifies over time and can ultimately lead to kidney failure. She had battled the disease through ups and downs since then, including bouts of extreme fatigue that caused her to sleep 16 to 20 hours a day, and even reached Stage 5 for a short time before a diet change resulted in an incremental improvement.

But as the fall turned to winter, her struggles grew progressively worse until doctors told her that her kidney condition once again constituted Stage 5. This time around, she knew what she had to do. She needed help.

“I knew I needed to ask for a living donor,” she said.

Cleofe was introduced to the idea a few years prior, when her and Julius had been invited to a National Kidney Foundation event featuring testimonials from living donors and their recipients. But as natives of The Philippines, the Zernas opted not to pursue a living donor the first time Cleofe went to Stage 5, basing their decision on a cultural belief that a debt that cannot be repaid should not be sought.

“How could I repay someone who would be giving me a second chance to live?’” said Cleofe of her original mindset.

“Listening to the donors’ testimonies, I was like, ‘oh my gosh, there are people who will actually do that for someone!?’ I learned there are people who just have big hearts, and it really opened my mind and my husband’s mind.”

And so, on February 15, 2021, Cleofe took to Facebook to see if her ‘someone’ was out there. In a long post titled, “THE BIG ASK, THE BIG GIFT,” Cleofe detailed both her situation and her request, revealing that her kidney function was down to just 11 percent, and that her projected time on the waiting list for a cadaver kidney would be anywhere from four to seven years.

“My goal is to have a kidney transplant and not go through dialysis,” she wrote. “For the sake of my loving family, particularly my awesome husband of 24 years and our 3 wonderful daughters, I am reaching out for your help.

“I feel awkward to outright ask you for your kidney, that is a very powerful and personal gesture, however, I would be truly grateful for such a selfless gesture and what a blessing you would be to me and my family. May God Bless you more.”

Tucked into one of the last paragraphs was a link to the Mayo Clinic Transplant Center with information on living-donor transplantation and donor evaluation. Johnson saw the post, and after the initial shock of Cleofe’s news wore off, clicked the link that same day.

“I didn’t even really think about it,” said Johnson, who is also a mother to three children. “I just was like, ‘I’m going to fill this out.’ I had no idea where it would go.”

Where it went was straight into a multi-day whirlwind of phone calls, virtual and in-person appointments with Mayo Clinic personnel, and an exhaustive testing regimen.

“I told my husband (Jerremiah) that if nothing else, I’ll have a really thorough physical,” she said.

Just a few days later, however, Johnson got a hint that what she had gone through was much more than a comprehensive check-up, as Cleofe posted again on Facebook with an update from Mayo Clinic: a potential donor had been identified.

“I realized that Mayo Clinic only takes one candidate through that process at a time just because it’s so intensive and thorough and costly,” Johnson said. “So, I sort of felt a little pressure then, like, ‘gosh, I hope it’s me.’ Because if it’s not, then it’s going to set her back all this time and she’ll have to start over with somebody else.”

In late April, Johnson found out officially that it was her; Mayo Clinic called to inform her that she was a donor match for Cleofe.

“I got the phone call at school that day and I just couldn’t hold on to the news any longer,” said Johnson, a third-grade teacher at St. Michael Elementary. “I wanted to go that afternoon.”

The next step was to figure out how to tell her.

Johnson got Cleofe’s cell phone number from Rheana and sent Cleofe a text message. In addition to asking Cleofe if she was available, Johnson told her that she had “something to give” to her – a statement that would not reveal its true depth until months later.

Once Cleofe confirmed she was home, Johnson made her way over and walked in with a gift bag and a card containing a special message inside. In the form of a poem, she told Cleofe that her quest for a living donor was over.

“As I was reading it, I realized, ‘oh, my gosh, you’re my donor,’” Cleofe said. “And we just started crying together. Just the two of us in my kitchen.”

That night, Cleofe hopped on Facebook one more time to share the joyous news, and to express gratitude to God and a selfless soccer coach:

“God answers prayers to those who ask and believe, THANK YOU GOD

To those who’s been following my progress in regards to my kidneys, meet my living DONOR, Megan Johnson, my girls High School Soccer Coach

Coach Megan came this evening and told me the greatest news that my family and I have been praying for: she’s my match! My living Donor!

Coach, What a Blessing you are to me and my family!!!!”

Cleofe and Johnson both underwent successful transplant surgeries on July 9, 2021, with doctors deciding not to remove the failing kidneys from Cleofe’s body. With the addition of a healthy third one from Johnson, her kidney function remarkably rose to 90 percent by the middle of the month.

“A new life, a new person – that’s how I felt,” said Cleofe. “My energy is through the roof.”

She has been exercising and lifting weights for several months now, and in February 2022, she went on vacation to Florida, her first vacation since the surgery.

“When I think about it, it always makes me cry,” Cleofe said. “I really called up a miracle because it’s hard to find a living donor. It has to be your one-in-a-million. And my one-in-a-million was right here in my neighborhood. She is our ‘coach for life.’”

Sometimes, all it takes is a little help from your “friends” turned friends.

Reporting materials from John Millea of the Minnesota State High School League and David La Vaque of the Minneapolis Star Tribune were used in this article.