Vince Villano has been a regular at his local Starbucks in DuPont, Washington for many years. Nicole McNeil is the cheerful barista who typically serves Vince his cup of coffee, and for years, she only knew him as “Trenta Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Brew, full pumps.”

One day, Nicole noticed that Vince looked particularly depressed, so she decided to sit with him after her shift and ask him what was going on.

“He walked in and just looked particularly sad,” Nicole recalled, “and I was just like, ‘What’s, ya know, what’s goin’ on Vince?’”

It was only then that Nicole learned that Vince was an Army Sergeant. This particularly touched her, since her husband Justin McNeil holds this same position in the Army. Vince had spent eight years serving as an emergency medical technician, and eleven years ago, he learned that he suffers from Polycystic Kidney Disease.

Vince had managed to keep the disease under control until recently, but his kidneys were getting worse and worse each day to the point where he had to get dialysis treatments. While he was on the kidney donor list, he knew his chances of getting one were slim, and he worried about his children Kanton and Savanna, who are 18 and 20 years-old.

Nicole was saddened by Vince’s story, and when she went home, she told Justin about it.

When Justin heard Vince’s story, he knew he had to help him.

“I have a kidney,” Justin said without hesitation. “He can have mine.”

Part of Nicole was shocked that Justin would offer up his kidney to a stranger, but the other part of her was not surprised.

“He cares about people almost more than any anybody I’ve ever met,” Nicole explained. “He’s the kindest person I’ve ever met. So, when he said, ‘I’ll give my kidney,’ it seemed like, ‘OK, sure. Yeah, you will.’”

The McNeils started spending more time with Vince and his family, and the two veterans bonded immediately.

“It’s like brothers,” Justin said of their friendship.

Justin felt compelled to help Vince, so he quickly got tested to see if he was a match for the kidney donation. Sure enough, Justin was a perfect match!

The McNeils spent Christmas with Vince’s family, and the next day, both men checked into the hospital. The surgery was a huge success for both men, and Vince’s kidney is now functioning so well that doctors say that Justin has bought him another twenty years of life!

This just goes to show how one simple, kind interaction can change someone’s life forever!