Rarely does religion come into play at the piers (unless you count an angler praying for a fish to bite). Thus, the following story intrigued me when I first heard it.
On the Oprah television show one day the topic was doing good to others. Lo and behold two of the guests were fishermen who had met at the Hermosa Beach Pier. Their names were Rick Wilson and Frank Rembert and evidently Rembert was pretty sick when they met; his kidneys were not working, he was on a dialysis machine, and the doctors said he was going to die unless he received a transplant.
One day his wife took him to the pier for a little relaxation and a chance to get his mind off his troubles. There he happened to cut his hand, a neighboring angler, Wilson, offered a Band-aid, they struck up a conversation, and they quickly became friends. Wilson soon learned of Rembert's need for a new kidney and when he got home he couldn't put his new friend's need out of his mind. Two days later, over the objections of his family and friends, he called offering to donate one of his own kidneys.
Eight months later the operation was performed and both men emerged in healthy condition (although they had to remove one of Wilson's ribs to get to his kidney — and polished pieces of the rib bone are now worn on silver chains around each man's neck).
Why did Wilson do such a thing for a stranger? He said some force had told him to move to Hermosa Beach, the same force had told him to fish on the pier, and the force seemed to direct him to offer up his kidney. Soon after the operation he moved from the beach. He attributed it to his religion and it wouldn’t surprise me one bit.
On the Oprah television show one day the topic was doing good to others. Lo and behold two of the guests were fishermen who had met at the Hermosa Beach Pier. Their names were Rick Wilson and Frank Rembert and evidently Rembert was pretty sick when they met; his kidneys were not working, he was on a dialysis machine, and the doctors said he was going to die unless he received a transplant.
One day his wife took him to the pier for a little relaxation and a chance to get his mind off his troubles. There he happened to cut his hand, a neighboring angler, Wilson, offered a Band-aid, they struck up a conversation, and they quickly became friends. Wilson soon learned of Rembert's need for a new kidney and when he got home he couldn't put his new friend's need out of his mind. Two days later, over the objections of his family and friends, he called offering to donate one of his own kidneys.
Eight months later the operation was performed and both men emerged in healthy condition (although they had to remove one of Wilson's ribs to get to his kidney — and polished pieces of the rib bone are now worn on silver chains around each man's neck).
Why did Wilson do such a thing for a stranger? He said some force had told him to move to Hermosa Beach, the same force had told him to fish on the pier, and the force seemed to direct him to offer up his kidney. Soon after the operation he moved from the beach. He attributed it to his religion and it wouldn’t surprise me one bit.