Councilman Terence McSweeney was recently on-hand at Stony Brook University Hospital to present a Heroism Award on behalf of the Babylon Town Board, the town’s highest honor. The award was given to town resident Lisa Hentschel who donated a kidney to save the life of her best friend.
Eleanor Lalima and Lisa Hentschel have been friends for 30 years and grew up together in Deer Park. Lalima has been battling kidney disease since the age of 16, and tragically lost her mother and brother to the disease. Doctors at Stony Brook University Hospital recently advised Lalima that she needed a kidney transplant. Lalima knew that the wait time on a donor list would likely be years, so she put out an urgent request on social media. It turns out her childhood best friend, Hentschel, was a match.
In late May, both women underwent a successful surgery, and are since doing well. Councilman McSweeney was proud to present Hentschel with a Heroism Award on behalf of Supervisor Rich Schaffer, Deputy Supervisor Tony Martinez and the rest of the Babylon Town Board for her selfless act of bravery that helped save Lalima’s life.
Photo (left to right): Professor and Chairman of the Urology and Director of Kidney Transplantation Program at Stony Brook University Hospital Dr Wayne Waltzer, kidney recipient Eleanor Lalima, kidney donor and heroism award recipient Lisa Hentschel, Councilman Terence McSweeney, and Clinical/Medical Director of the Renal Transplantation Program at Stony Brook University Hospital Dr. Frank Darras.