Kidney Transplant Gives Missouri Pastor a Restful Retirement

Bob Johnston of Rolla, Missouri, was no stranger to life’s difficult moments. The 72-year-old pastor of 50 years dedicated his life to bringing hope and wisdom to those around him. In January 2021, that calling put him on the front lines of the pandemic to visit and support members of his congregation who had fallen ill. It’s likely how he contracted COVID-19, setting off a chain of events that eventually brought him to Saint Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City for a life-changing kidney transplant.  

At first, Bob’s symptoms were manageable: a fever, fatigue, loss of taste, and a mild cough. But by the end of the month, things took a turn. 

“I started having more trouble breathing and my family called 911,” he says. “They took me to the local hospital in Rolla on January 25, and that’s where my memory ends.”  

A turning point 

What followed was a cascade of complications. Bob’s case of COVID-19 had triggered severe inflammation throughout his body.  

He developed a pulmonary embolism, a sudden blockage that stops blood flow to the lungs. He was placed on a ventilator for five weeks. His kidneys—once perfectly healthy—began to fail. His care team indicated kidney inflammation was a rare, but serious, side effect of his body’s inflammatory response to the virus.  

It was five weeks before Bob regained consciousness. It was now early March, and he had been transferred to a third hospital as his care needs continued to escalate. 

“I woke up to my granddaughter blowing me kisses in a hospital room,” he recalls. “That’s the first thing I remember.” 

Bob was discharged in late April 2021, but his recovery was far from over. While his lungs were regaining strength, his kidneys struggled to bounce back, and he was placed on dialysis. Doctors determined that the damage was permanent, and that he would need to consider a kidney transplant.  

Facing the reality 

Before COVID-19, Bob had been in great health. Now, he was navigating late-stage kidney failure.  

“I was doing okay for a while, but I could tell dialysis wasn’t a long-term solution for me,” he says. “It limited what I could eat, what I could drink, what I could do, and when I could do it. It was taking a toll on my physical and mental health.”  

In fall 2021, Bob and his family decided to start researching options for a kidney transplant. They read about Saint Luke’s Hospital Abdominal Transplant and Multispecialty Clinic, which has performed nearly 2,500 kidney transplants with life-changing results. Bob reached out and scheduled a consultation. 

Waiting for a match 

After a series of tests, he was placed on the waiting list for a kidney transplant, but his doctors cautioned him that he might be waiting for some time. “My blood type is O-positive, so I could only receive a transplant from someone with that blood type,” Bob says. “It might be the most common blood type, but it also means the donor pool is smaller relative to the need.”  

The process even led Bob to think about the emotional and ethical questions of organ transplants. “I kept thinking to myself, ‘I’m 72 years old. Why are they even considering me for a transplant?’” he says. 

But his care team at Saint Luke’s saw something else.  

“You’re healthy—healthier than a lot of people we see,” as one physician told him. “A transplant can give you several more years of well-deserved energy and strength.” 

Getting the call 

On January 24, 2026—exactly five years after he went to the hospital with COVID-19—Bob got the call.  

Doctors had found an exceptional match. Just hours later, Bob was at Saint Luke’s Hospital undergoing surgery. The impact was almost immediate. “I stood up and walked the very next day,” Bob says.  

He began physical therapy to help rebuild his strength step by step. Within a few days, his body began responding in ways he hadn’t experienced in years.  

“Fatigue had come to define my daily life,” Bob says. “And just like that, I felt it all melt away. I was up, I was active, I was able to enjoy foods that I hadn’t been able to eat for five years. It was incredible.”  

A well-deserved recovery 

Bob’s five-year wait for a transplant was a lesson in patience—and a test of his faith.  

“I remember asking God, ‘Why am I not talking to you?’” he says. “I had to work through the silence, the anger, the guilt—all those emotions.”  

Unable to remain with his congregation due to COVID-19 restrictions and the impacts of kidney failure, Bob resigned from the church he had pastored for 32 years. Afterwards, he took to writing. He started an online blog for his reflections, which quickly gained traction among friends, family, and community supporters.  

“Writing kept me from sitting in the dark asking, ‘Why me?’” he says. “Now I ask, ‘How can my struggle help others who may be on this road as well?’” 

Though he stepped away from full-time ministry work, Bob’s sense of purpose is crystal clear in retirement. “I’m still a pastor,” he says. “It just looks different now.”  

A moment of gratitude  

Bob doesn’t know who his donor was. He only knows their impact. “I’d want to say thank you,” he says. “And that I promise to take very good care of this kidney and the life it’s given me.”  

His experience has shaped how he thinks about organ donation. “I think it’s a beautiful way to have an impact beyond your life on this earth.”  

Today, Bob continues to regain his strength. Follow-up tests confirm his new kidney is functioning well, he’s back home with his family, and he’s embracing a new season of life as a retiree. A life that once felt uncertain now feels brimming with possibility.  

“I’ve been given an incredible gift,” he says. “I am so grateful to everyone at Saint Luke’s for their care and insights every step of the way.” 

About Saint Luke’s Transplant Team 

Saint Luke’s is a leader in kidney transplantation—performing the first successful kidney transplant in the Kansas City area in 1969 and the first living kidney donation surgery via laparoscopy in the region. The Saint Luke's kidney transplant team is one of the most experienced programs in the region, having performed nearly 2,500 transplants with below-average wait times and above-average success metrics. 

Learn more about our kidney transplant services.