There are many ways we can observe the commandment to “Honor thy father and mother,” but few can say they literally put their body and soul into fulfilling that mitzvah. Last week, Teaneck native and current resident Koby Sterman donated a kidney to his father, longtime Teaneck resident and now Boynton Beach resident, Howard (Howie) Sterman.
Koby, a lawyer and father of two, lives in Teaneck with his wife, Shlomit. He told The Jewish Link, “I didn’t do this for recognition. I did this for my father.
“The whole process took a long time. Renewal is an amazing organization—my father couldn’t stop praising them. They literally changed and saved his life. They also guided me every step of the way, checked in on me, and made sure I was doing everything I needed to do. Their support throughout the process was so important.”
Howie grew up in Passaic before settling in Teaneck with his wife, Ruchie (Morah Ruchie), where they lived for 45 years. He suffered from chronic kidney disease for many years, and a little over a year ago, his kidneys could no longer function well enough on their own. Howie began dialysis three days a week, five hours at a time while waiting for a life-saving kidney transplant.
For many years, Howie leined Megillat Esther at YIOT, for his family and for the women of the Country Club section of Teaneck. Fittingly, his life-saving transplant took place on Taanit Esther.
“Now that my son graciously donated a kidney to me, it has completely changed my life. There are new restrictions and follow-up appointments that take up most of my time, but friends and family have been unbelievably helpful. I can’t praise my wife enough for all of the care she’s providing. My thanks go out to Renewal for all of their support,” Howie shared.
In February 2024, there was a Renewal swabbing event in Teaneck to try to find a donor for Howie and another local resident in need of a kidney. While that event didn’t generate a donor for either of them, 117 people were swabbed.
According to Rabbi Josh Sturm, director of outreach for Renewal, that event has already resulted in three kidney transplants. Another transplant is scheduled to take place shortly, and several more people are currently undergoing further testing.
Renewal is a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of kidney donation, hosting swabbing events to identify potential donors, and supporting both donors and recipients throughout the transplant process. According to Renewal, chronic kidney disease afflicts more than 26 million Americans. Thankfully, live kidney donation is a safe and proven treatment that generally allows patients to resume normal lives post-transplant. While dialysis helps many kidney disease patients survive, a transplant is often the best long-term solution for improving quality of life.
There are currently 90,000 people on the kidney transplant waiting list, according to Rabbi Sturm. “The harsh reality is that many of those 90,000 will never get a transplant,” he said. “There are only about 21,000 transplants a year between living and cadaver donations. The numbers are stacked against those in need of a kidney. But with Renewal and the Jewish community, those statistics don’t apply. The average person across the country would be lucky if even one potential donor came forward. We held one event for two people, and 117 got tested. Numbers like that are nearly unheard of outside the Jewish community.”
Teaneck has become a tremendous source of kidney donors. According to Rabbi Sturm, “Teaneck is incredible—with an amazing 52 kidney donors coming from the community, including two rabbis. It’s such a phenomenal place.”
Renewal opened its doors in 2006. In its early years, the organization facilitated a few transplants annually. Last year alone, they coordinated 158 transplants. To date, they have helped complete 1,237 kidney transplants.
To learn more about local swabbing events or kidney transplantation, visit https://www.renewal.org.
