Bear, with me: Bowie boys basketball coach gives dad a second chance with kidney transplant

El Paso Times | Felix Chavez
Luis Celaya points to the signature on a special pillow of the doctor who performed his kidney transplant while sitting in the family living room with his son, Bowie High School boys basketball coach Daniel Celaya, who donated his kidney to his father. (Vanessa Monsisvais / El Paso Times)

The decision was never in doubt for Daniel Celaya.

His father, Luis Celaya, was in need of a kidney transplant. Daniel Celaya was a match.

Luis Celaya is a loving, kind and supportive father who would do anything for his children. It seems his children have learned those values. Daniel says he was just doing something his father would have done.

"I knew if I could donate my kidney and everything was set physically, there would be no hesitation on my part," said Daniel Celaya, the boys basketball coach at Bowie High School. "It took some time for all of this to happen. I had to lose weight and there were some hiccups along the way. Everything had to be just perfect."

It was yet another step in a long, emotional journey for the Celaya family, which had seen the patriarch of the family battle through pain for years. The family bonded and kept their faith that things would work out.

On Sept. 4, father and son flew to San Antonio and on Sept. 6 at the University Transplant Center, the surgery took place.
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