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Christmas Miracle: Man Receives Kidney Donation On Dec. 24

BOSTON (CBS) -- A Wareham man got the gift of a lifetime this Christmas.

Fifty-five-year-old Joseph Gougeon has been in desperate need of a kidney for years.

After he was diagnosed with Diabetes in his late 20's, Gougeon suffered nerve damage in his feet and hands, his eyes began to give him trouble, and his kidneys began to fail. In 2014, he was put on the wait-list for a kidney donation.

On Christmas Eve, Gougeon got the call he had been waiting for: a matching kidney was waiting for him.

KIDNEYWITHDOC
Joseph Gougeon with Doctor Charles Strom following his kidney transplant surgery (WBZ-TV)

"When Tufts called me, they said 'Can you get here as soon as you can,' I said 'Yes, it'll take me about an hour or so,' and they said, 'That's okay, we can do it,'" Gougeon recalled.

"I called my daughter, told her, and then I called my son and I told him," Gougeon continued. "Everyone came running over and we got here as fast as we could."

Transplant doctor Charles Strom performed the surgery in the very early hours of Christmas. He made it home in time to see his kids open their Christmas presents.

Gougeon hopes to head home on Thursday.

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