Twenty-six years ago, Donnie Parker and Jamarcus Houston met in a small first-grade classroom in Alabama. From baseball cards to long summer days on the field, their bond grew quickly — and lasted a lifetime. They were there for each other through school, jobs, marriages, and every challenge life threw their way.
Then came the test no friendship could ignore. Jamarcus was diagnosed with kidney failure, spending a year and a half on dialysis. Donnie watched helplessly as his best friend grew weaker. Every time he offered to get tested as a donor, Jamarcus refused.
“I don’t want to put you through that,” Jamarcus would say. “I’ll be fine.”
But Donnie couldn’t stand by. When tests confirmed he was a perfect match, he made the decision without hesitation. “That’s what friends do,” he said. “It’s the right thing to do.”
Three days ago, at UAB Hospital, Donnie gave Jamarcus one of his kidneys. The surgery was long and complex, but both came through safely. And though they were groggy from surgery, the lifelong Crimson Tide fans even watched part of the game together from their hospital beds — smiling weakly, but proudly.
What happens next will restore your faith in friendship — read Part 2 below
More Stories
Teen Girl Reveals Her Bucket List Ahead of Total Vision Loss – See What She Wants to Do
Bob Weir, the heartbeat of the Grateful Dead, dies at 78
The Final Instructions Renee Nicole Good Left for Her Children — Revealed After Her Death and Now Haunting Everyone Who Reads Them The grief didn’t come all at once — it unfolded word by word. After Renee Nicole Good went out and was tragically shot, her family revealed something they had kept private until now: the final instructions she had given her children. They weren’t dramatic. They weren’t long. But they were devastating in their clarity. According to relatives, Renee had spoken calmly, almost protectively, telling her children exactly how she wanted them to live if anything ever happened to her — how to take care of one another, who to listen to, and what not to carry with them. One line, shared by the family, immediately spread across social media, stopping people mid-scroll and leaving thousands in tears. It wasn’t fear she passed on — it was strength, guidance, and love delivered before tragedy ever struck. As the words circulated online, strangers began sharing them as if they were their own, turning a private mother’s final message into a collective moment of mourning that now refuses to fade quietly….