Move over (for now), Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams! There’s a new on-screen hockey player for all of us to obsess over at the moment, and the IRL actor who plays him is not only incredibly hot but has an incredibly heroic backstory!
Belmont Cameli is the star of the new Prime show Off Campus, playing Garrett Graham. Fans of the Elle Kennedy book series know the beloved character very well, but they are likely unfamiliar with the guy playing him. Well, it turns out he did one of the most selfless things ever years before he got this breakout role! He donated a kidney to a complete stranger! Not only that, but he managed to save several other lives in the process! Here’s the deal…
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According to Dailymail.com on Thursday, Belmont volunteered to donate his kidney to his childhood friend Brendan Flaherty, who went into kidney failure, which meant he needed dialysis for 10 hours every day. But unfortunately, the actor wasn’t a match.
After the heartbreaking news, doctors at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago decided to look for someone else. They reportedly found Brendan a match in Kimberly Cooper. However, they soon realized Belmont was also a match for another patient, 59-year-old Clotilde Ruiz. She had planned on receiving a kidney from her daughter, Daisy, but learned they were incompatible. Thankfully, doctors found Belmont and her were a match! Although Belmont originally wanted to help his pal, he still agreed to donate his kidney to Clotilde and underwent the surgery days before he turned 20 years old!
It doesn’t stop there, though! Doctors then discovered Daisy was a perfect match for another patient, Scott Rial, and the swap went on and on until a total of seven people received life-saving donations! Amazing!
In February 2018, Belmont opened up about the experience on Instagram, saying:
“Yesterday I was blessed with the opportunity and privilege to save a life. The fact of the matter is that most of us have two good kidneys, but thousands of people struggle to live day to day with only one failing kidney. Every day, 20 people die waiting for a kidney transplant. It takes patients an average of 3.5 years on the waitlist before receiving a transplant, and that is only IF they are so fortunate.”
The Saved by the Bell reboot alum continued:
“Thankfully, after 6 years of strenuous waiting and anticipation, Brendan has been gifted the organ he has so long awaited, and my new friend Clotilde will finally have a healthy kidney and a fresh new start to life. I am so grateful to be a part of this swap program involving 14 people and blessing 7 patients with new organs and brighter futures. Soon my pain will disappear and my scars will fade away, but the love in my heart from this experience will forever remain.”
OMG! Is anyone else swooning even more over this man now? This is such a beautiful act of kindness to do for someone you don’t even know! See the post (below):
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Reactions, Perezcious readers? Let us know in the comments!
[Image via Prime Video/YouTube]
