Handyman donates kidney after being helped out of homelessness

GAITHERSBURG, Maryland (WABC) -- A handyman was honored to donate his kidney and pay it forward after another member of the community helped him out in his time of need.

Dan Reynolds was hired to do some work six years ago when he was spotted standing in the snow at a bus stop in Maryland.
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Doug Shumway decided to give him a ride on that cold winter day and invited Reynolds to do some contracting work and had him fix some plumbing issues.

It was then that Shumway learned that Reynolds had been living out of a van for the last two years.

When he revealed he was homeless, Shumway invited Reynolds to move in with him. It wasn't long before Reynolds became a fixture in the community doing work for neighbors.



It turns out one of those neighbors, Anthony Antonelli, needed a kidney, and Reynolds asked if he could help.



"It was a complete shock, out of the blue and quite frankly you can't make that stuff up," Antonelli said.
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It turns out they were a perfect match and the surgery was a success.

Antonelli said there's a reason that Reynolds is in his life and he can't thank him enough.

"It's not hard to help each other out, do things for each other, pay it forward," Reynolds said.

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