Port Authority Police Officer Brian Cooney, a long-time blood donor, decided to donate a kidney to a stranger, starting an organ donation chain that ultimately gave a kidney to Mets player Ed Kranepool.
Ed Kranepool doesn’t mind that Cooney is a Yankees’ fan.
“I didn’t have a particular reason, there wasn’t a person I wanted to help and I didn’t have friends or family who needed it, but I talked to the hospital about donating to a stranger and they said they would love it if I did,” Cooney told Thomas Tracy for the New York Daily News. “I just wanted to help one person, but to enable other people get the help they need, it’s even better,” Cooney said. “It’s icing on the cake.”
Officer Cooney was initially an NYPD officer, joining in 1999. He spent weeks at the recovery efforts at the World Trade Center after the terrorist attacks. He joined the Port Authority Police Department in 2002.
“Because of the time I was at Ground Zero and with everyone getting sick, I feel extra lucky to be able to give something back. It’s a blessing,” Cooney said.
