Chance Encounter At Magic Kingdom In Walt Disney World Makes Man’s Search For A Kidney Go Viral

Walt Disney World is the place where everyone is supposed to forget the outside world and believe in fantasy, but there are times you can’t help but remember real life and still end up with some magic. A 60-year-old man by the name of Robert Leibowitz is in desperate need of a kidney transplant and he’s doing whatever he can to try and get one. Luckily, a kind-hearted woman who saw him at Magic Kingdom and is helping in any way possible to help grant his wish.

According to WSB-TV, Rocio Sandoval just happened to be walking around Magic Kingdom with her family when she ran into Leibowitz. She wouldn’t have thought he was any different than anyone else in the park that day, but she happened to notice his T-shirt and the message across the back of it.

Leibowitz was wearing a white shirt that simply said, “In need of a kidney – O positive – Call 917-597-2651.”

When Sandoval saw that he was pushing a wheelchair, she assumed the kidney needed was for the teenage boy sitting in it. She asked to take a picture of his shirt so she could post it online and Leibowitz had no objections.

Since then, though, she has learned the truth about the kidney that is needed.

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After posting the photo online, Sandoval updated it the next day to say she called the number to let them know how many times it had been shared as it approached 80,000. That was when she learned that it was actually Robert who needed the kidney and not the young man in the wheelchair who is Robert’s son.

Tap Into gave a little more information on Robert who always seemed to have a positive outlook on life, but he also suffers from a chronic kidney disease. He contracted the disease at the age of 12 when he had a serious kidney infection and then, he learned he’d need a transplant one day.

Robert is on the donor list and undergoing dialysis three times a week for four hours a day as he awaits a transplant. The problem here is that he needs to find a donor who is O positive and that just so happens to be a rare type.

On August 22, Robert Leibowitz was in Magic Kingdom to celebrate his 60th birthday with his family which includes his five children. After running into Rocio Sandoval and having a picture taken of his shirt for Facebook, he may end up getting a gift soon that he needs more than anything.

The world is an interesting place and one that brings people from all walks of life together and that includes within the confines of Walt Disney World. Robert Leibowitz is in desperate need of a kidney transplant and he wore a shirt to Magic Kingdom stating as much. Maybe someone will make a call and maybe someone won’t, but he met Rocio Sandoval on that day and her post to Facebook can only increase the chances that his plea is shared with more people.

[Featured Image by Danny Cox]