Baylor friends share interests, career field — and kidneys
Brittany Tucker and Daphne McGee are both 2012 Baylor graduates. Both love to sing and dance, both were extremely dedicated to their studies, and both are in the education field.
There’s one other thing they share: a set of kidneys.
Brittany (pictured at left above) came to Baylor in the fall of 2007. She quickly excelled in her studies, got involved with organizations on campus, and made plenty of friends. But during her second semester, she suddenly became so sick that she had to withdraw from school. It was during this time she found out she had a hereditary kidney disease caused by lupus.
“Just like a bad hand in a card game, I felt I had been dealt a bad hand with my health,” says Brittany. “But in life, similar to a card game, you cannot help the cards that God ‘deals.’ Sometimes, we even deal ourselves a bad hand. Whatever it is, it’s never more than we can bear.”
Perhaps it was God’s plan, then, that Brittany met Daphne while playing cards in the SUB. Over the years, their friendship grew as they participated together in Heavenly Voices Gospel Choir, Impact Step Team and All University Sing.
Soon, it was their senior year, and together they celebrated RG3 winning the Heisman Trophy, Baylor football winning the Alamo Bowl, the Lady Bears winning the national championship in an undefeated season, and their own graduation (both magna cum laude). Daphne (pictured at right above) headed to Atlanta to complete a dual degree in law and public health, while Brittany began her first year of teaching in Dallas.
But Brittany’s health issues hadn’t disappeared; in fact, they began to worsen that fall. By May of last year, Brittany’s doctor told her it was time to start dialysis and look for a kidney donor. Daphne was quick to volunteer hers, and was the first to be tested for a match. Given how God had steered their lives together so far, it probably doesn’t come as a surprise that Daphne was, indeed, a match.
This past May — in the middle of her dual-degree program — she flew the 781 miles to Dallas to undergo surgery with Brittany. A third sign that God was with them both: The chaplain covering the floor had been the chaplain in Daphne’s residence hall.
A month later, both young ladies are doing well. Brittany is out of the hospital and getting good reports from her doctors; Daphne is enjoying time with family and friends in Houston.
Their story can be summed up by Brittney’s take on the experience: “Believe me when I say God is working on your behalf — even when you can’t see him.”
Sic ’em, Brittany and Daphne!
[We learned of this note from a Bear who shared her Baylor pride. Do you know of an inspiring story, news item, or just a fun link that makes you proud of Baylor and the Baylor family? Let us know! Click here to submit your point of pride!]