‘Truly A Miracle’
Local Woman Receives Kidney Transplant In Face Of Tough TimesBy Robert Rizzuto rrizzuto@post-journal.com
Article Photos
Fred Piazza Jr. and his wife Christina have dealt with the unexpected death of a loved one, an eviction and the result was a feeling of hopelessness.
But at a time when everything seemed to be going wrong for them, a phone call came in that would change their lives - this time for the better.
''On Tuesday, my dad called me and said that he got a call from the hospital in Buffalo and the first thing I though is that something happened with my other brother, because he's a tow truck driver,'' Piazza Jr. said. ''But they were calling to say that they had a kidney for my wife, and I couldn't believe it. It's truly a miracle.''
A ROUGH ROAD
Christina found out she needed a kidney transplant in 2006 and since then, she has endured about three dialysis treatments every week which often left her feeling sick. At that point, her brother-in-law Jason Piazza came through and offered her hope - through one of his kidneys.
Then, in the early morning hours of March 15, Jason and his fiancee, Darby Martin, died in a car accident on Route 60.
''When my brother died, we thought that Christina's only chance at getting a transplant died with him,'' Piazza Jr. said. ''When it rains it pours, and we were ready to give up hope on life in general. But this kidney came through out of nowhere and the donor was the same age and didn't use drugs or alcohol. My little brother must have been upstairs looking out for her.''
Christina had a successful kidney transplant surgery Tuesday evening which took about eight hours. There were a few complications along the way, her husband explained, but the doctors told him that all things considered, it went well and she should begin recovering soon.
Tuesday when the call came, it wasn't long after a call from their landlord telling them they had 72 hours to vacate the Celoron home they have lived in since November 2008.
''I was working a trucking job but it wasn't bringing in enough money and I was always away, leaving my wife to fend for herself,'' Piazza Jr. said. ''We decided it was best for me to quit that job so I did and I've been looking for something else since then but haven't had much luck until lately. Anyhow, we got behind on our rent and they decided to kick us out, but I wish they would have just given us a couple extra days to sort things out.''
It seems that every appointment he has made lately to get things on track has hit a brick wall when something unexpected happens. On March 16, Piazza Jr. had an appointment with the Department of Social Services so they could work out a plan to help sustain the family until he could get back on his feet, and then the accident happened the day before.
On Tuesday, he had a list of apartments for rent in the area and planned on having one nailed down before the sun went down, but then they received word that the kidney was available.
''Our landlords said they were going to throw all of our stuff onto the curb if we didn't get it out but I made the decision to get my wife to the hospital so she could have the surgery we have waited so long for,'' he said. ''Her health means more to me than everything we own and all I could do was hope that they didn't do it.''
A NEW BEGINNING
It turns out that when he returned home from Buffalo on Wednesday for a change of clothes and a shower, their belongings were still inside the apartment and uninterrupted. Piazza Jr. and his father packed some things up and arranged for family members to move everything else out later in the evening.
Shortly after Christina returns home from Buffalo General Hospital, her husband will begin working a new job. He explained that during the process of burying his brother Jason, he learned that Sunset Hills Cemetery was hiring and in his words, they took care of him.
He said he plans on signing a lease for a new apartment in the coming weeks and paying his now previous landlord the money owed to them. He said they are trying to move past everything that has happened, although it will never be forgotten.
''Its been a really upsetting month for the whole family but we've all made it through everything- together,'' he said. ''I feel like things are finally starting to look up and I'm lucky to have such a great family.''
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BudZilla
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04-08-09 7:55 PM
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To my math, it was not THREE days as you keep claiming, it was more like SEVENTY EIGHT DAYS of not paying rent. Since you so highly valued the Piazza’s continued presence in the apartment, YOU should have coughed up the rent money. You expect the landlord to be without the money, would only be fair to expect the same of your wallet. You cite illegal, yet the PJ correction says the court ordered it. “Emergency” is not correct description of something stretching toward three months.
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linemen692009
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04-08-09 4:34 PM
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Budzilla do you know the landlords from this article? But you think they were genrous dont you? Do you know anything about the transplant prosses? Do you know all that the tenants were asking for is for three days untill he knew that his wife was going to be in good condition so he could get his things out of the apartment then he would have gladly went and got his things out of there. Did you know that the landlord said that his things will be on the curb at the end of those 72 hours. But did you know it is illegal for landlord to do so if the tennant is not available in case of emergency? What i am saying is that the landlord should have used different words to mr piazza and should have used moral judgement on his part knowing that the kidney should come first because he has a relative that is on the transplant list. i know this cause ive seen them at local kidney functions with his relative.
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BudZilla
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04-07-09 8:58 PM
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\/ Lost the "E" out of HUGE there.
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BudZilla
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04-07-09 1:03 PM
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linemen692009's hug accusations seem to have gone silent when faced with facts. Terrible that the hatred for the very generous landlord ever made it to the public eye.
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pandora
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04-04-09 7:38 PM
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The P-J posted a correction today... "EVICTION THROUGH COURTS The 72-hour eviction notice mentioned in the story about the Piazza family in Thursday's edition of The Post-Journal was issued through the courts, not the landlords." So, linemen, you called out the landlords for absolutely no reason.
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linemen692009
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04-04-09 4:04 PM
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budzilla you think the landlord was compasionate when he told the piazza's that when the kidney came in that he should have chose his stuff over his wifes life thats really compasionate for a a-hole. do you know what he was telling him? he was telling him to let his wife die. he knew he had to get out and dss was going to pay and they were just plain out rude. but i think you should tell fred to his face that his wife should have not have gotten the kidney and well see who walks away from that one.
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BudZilla
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04-04-09 3:00 PM
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linemen692009: Your claims are ridiculous and seek to skate around the central issue: THE RENT WASN’T BEING PAID. Only a fool would believe the landlord didn't want paid. The agreed form of payment is not the issue; Pay the man as agreed or get out. As a landlord, I’ve knocked on doors many times attempting to collect late rent. Seeing the tenant close the curtains and hearing their footsteps inside as they refuse to answer the door reminds a landlord that it is the tenant’s job to pay the rent, not the landlord’s job to try to hassle it out of them. They wanted, “Just a couple more days.” Seventy five days behind on the rent, obviously the landlord was FAR more patient than he EVER should have been, yet you wish to blacken his name in this forum. SHAME ON YOU! You and the Piazzas should be publicly thanking the landlord for being so compassionate! It should be counted as “Truly a Miracle” that he was such a nice guy to let them stay so long!
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linemen692009
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04-04-09 5:57 AM
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budzilla these landlords didnt want them to pay with money orders or checks they just wanted cash and they didnt want the piazza's to deliver the rent personally to them. they never came to the house for two months to collect the rent untill it was two and a half months behind. but i know fred had feburarys rent because he had to make a decision on being able to get his wifes meds for her kidney failor or pay the rent he thinks life is more important. fred did have social services call the landlords to make arrangements on getting the rent payed and they did turn them down, and all fred was asking for was just a few days just to get his belongings out of the premises when his wife was stable and recovering really good thats all he wanted. it wasnt about having to move he wanted to cause of getting treated like crap from frank and victoria knapp. but a kidney had to come first for his 22 year old wife.
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BudZilla
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04-03-09 9:54 AM
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Linemen692009 claims the landlord "turned down social services when they called them to help out the piazza family" I find it hard to believe. Is that even legal in NY? I suspect not. All these claims of official business transacted by phone leave me suspicious. I’ve always received paperwork, not phone calls. Someone sane who is in the business of renting an apartment to tenants is GLAD to have a check arrive from Social Services every month to pay the rent. Individuals quit their jobs, get fired, get laid off, have a binge of drinking instead of paying rent, spend it all on Weed , have to replace car that died so don’t pay, “had it stolen” from them, etc. I’ve always smiled when offered a rent voucher from Chautauqua County. I know I will get paid the lion’s share of the rent.
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pandora
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04-02-09 7:02 PM
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linemen692009 - I never stated any facts - so there were none for me to have correct. I simply asked nadia a question. And my first comment did acknowledge their extenuating circumstance. Nor did I attack the Piazza's. Maybe, just maybe, linemen (are you more than one lineman?), before you point fingers about attacking, look at your comments - that was pretty a sleazy move to name the landlords (and no, I don't know them). I am SO happy that you were present at the conversation Fred had with them... thanks for setting us straight.
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linemen692009
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04-02-09 4:13 PM
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the landlords names are Frank and Victoria Knapp. and they told fred he had to choose between his wife living a healthy life or get his stuff out so think about what they were saying to him. he just wanted to make sure his wife was going to be ok after the operation then he would get his stuff out. just 3 days longer thats all the land lords are jerks and no one should rent the apartment on 25 conewango ave in celoron .
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linemen692009
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04-02-09 4:08 PM
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well i know the piazza's and they paid there rent and did have trouble then they went and got some help but the landlords turned down social services when they called them to help out the piazza family and all fred was asking for was just a couple of days untill his wife was ok in the hospital then he would get his stuff so get your facts right pandora before you attack them.
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ecarlson1
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04-02-09 4:00 PM
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It's too bad you all feel the need to attack these folks. Grandma always said, "If you don't have anything nice to say about someone, don't say anything at all."
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pandora
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04-02-09 1:23 PM
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And the Piazza's moved in Nov 2008 - already being evicted March 15th? Nadia - did they ever pay rent? BudZilla - thank you for your comments.
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pandora
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04-02-09 1:23 PM
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And the Piazza's moved in Nov 2008 - already being evicted March 15th? Nadia - did they ever pay rent? BudZilla - thank you for your comments.
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pandora
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04-02-09 1:21 PM
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To nadia - I am sorry for your loss, but I said nothing about the accident in my response. No I did not reach out to the P-J - we take care of our family and don't have to use the media to shame the landlord (which is how I read this). My aunt now lives with us. I have plenty of empathy for people - I dont need to be lectured.
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BudZilla
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04-02-09 12:12 PM
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The Landlord should never be ashamed of exerting his rights to protect his need to survive. He invested his time and money into the rental property in order to better provide for his and his family’s survival. Business is business. The hard luck of his tenants is not within his control, nor did he cause it. If the tenants were truly unable to work, we have Welfare and Social Security to pay their way. I suspect the Landlord knew enough to correctly serve legal 3-day “pay or quit” paperwork on the tenants. If he did not, the tenants have the ability to fight it in court. “I wish they would have just given us a couple extra days to sort things out” is every in-arrears tenant’s wish. “Just a few more days” becomes “Just a few more weeks”, and quickly translates to “You’ll never see the money.” Meanwhile the Landlord has his own bills to pay, and those he owes are quick to jack up interest rates and add on late fees if his payments are just a day late.
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nadia14701
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04-02-09 10:40 AM
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to paandora No the landlord shoud not profide free rent. However he should follow legal procedures that the law requires. You can not measure human life to pensions and lost wages. Yes they are hard to deal with but at least they are alive. I'm the aunt of Darby and would give up my job to have my niece back so she could be home to take care of her three children. Did you call the P- J to share your story did you reach out to help your aunt learn a little empath for others it might come back to you 10 fold.
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pandora
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04-02-09 7:47 AM
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So the landlord should provide free rent? If I remember correctly, that 72 hour notice comes ONLY after several attempts at collecting back rent and other notices to evict. I can bet it was not the Piazza's first notice. Everyone has extenuating circumstances - this just happened to be good enough for a P-J story. What about my elderly aunt who pension went bust? Or the family down the street where both parents lost their jobs?
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MISSCHAUT
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04-02-09 7:00 AM
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I agree shame on the landlord - in this day and age we need to help each other - The Piazza family seems like a good family - I hope things start looking up for them.
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sanders
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04-02-09 6:26 AM
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i used to hang out with fred years back...glad to see things are really working out..
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sawadee
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04-02-09 5:37 AM
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This landlord should be ashamned of himself for the additional stress and anxiety he put onto this family. What a despicible thing too do, throwing them out under the already painful circumstances they were facing. I'm glad everything worked out for them. I hope someone can get the name of this landlord out so people will think twice before renting from him.
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