Similar majors and alphabetical order brought Bailey Elliott and Emily Ewert together when they pledged the same sorority at Kansas State University five years ago.

"We always would stand by each other in line going to chapter because E-l and then E-w - so we'd always be next to each other," Bailey recalls.

"We took a few of the same classes because we both in the pre-health world while we were at K-State," Emily said.

After graduation, they went their separate ways. Bailey, a Rock Creek High School graduate from Manhattan, started physical therapy school in Leavenworth, while Emily, a St. Thomas Aquinas alum, returned home to Overland Park to start prepping for physician assistant school.

Then, last August, Bailey went to the doctor for what she thought was a minor infection.

"I went from nothing was wrong to stage five kidney failure all in one day," Bailey said. "It was like, 'How is this happening?'"

Turns out, at age 23, Bailey learned she was born with a condition that was slowly scarring her kidneys. Doctors immediately put her on the transplant list. Doctors were amazed Bailey never felt any symptoms, so they had her drastically change her diet in hopes she could avoid dialysis while they searched for a donor.

Bailey's family shared the news with a Go Fund Me page, which Emily saw flood her Facebook feed.

"I'd called my friend because he knew Bailey, too, just to tell him what was going on and as soon as he picked up, it just came out. I said, 'Well, Bailey needs a kidney transplant and I'm gonna email and see if I'm a match.' I don't know what my thought process was," Emily said.

While the decision seems impulsive, Emily actually knew what Bailey might face. Emily interned at the Ronald McDonald House in Kansas City, organizing a camp for children with kidney disease being treated at Children's Mercy.

"Just by spending time with them and really learning about their lifestyles, I just knew that that's something I wanted to do," Emily said.

Bailey had no idea Emily was being tested, until the night Emily knocked on the door of Bailey's apartment.

"She walks in and had a sign that says, 'No I'm not kidney-ing you, we're a match,' because that was the slogan for my Go Fund Me page," Bailey said. "I was in shock. She just came and hugged me and I started crying!"

In mid-May, the two Wildcats found themselves at University of Kansas Health where doctors took one of Emily's kidneys and transplanted it in Bailey.

"Emily has given Bailey a new chance at life," said Dr. Sean Kumar, with KU Health Systems. "She is keeping her from dialysis and prolonging her life over the long term, so it's an incredible gift. She's also saving someone else who doesn't have a living donor from taking that kidney on the list."

According to the National Kidney Foundation, more than 100,000 people are on the list for kidney transplants and 13 people die each day waiting. Dr. Kumar said a living kidney donor is usually healthier for the recipient. In addition, Bailey said doctors were encouraged she found a donor close to her age.

The women spent just four days in the hospital - and plan to spend a lifetime celebrating a bond beyond sisterhood.

"I feel like I haven't done much for how much I've been able to impact her life," Emily said.

"I could not thank her enough and I don't know how I'll ever thank her. I get goosebumps thinking about it because she's definitely changed my life," Bailey said. "If someone's willing to be a donor, it's literally the best gift you can give."

The University of Kansas Health System has a living donor program. You can learn more about it,

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