Canal Winchester teen receives life-saving operation thanks to ‘Star Wars’
CANAL WINCHESTER, Ohio (WCMH) – A Canal Winchester teenager is getting the gift of life – a new kidney from an Athens man who saw a Facebook post on a Star Wars fan page.
And on Monday, that teen got an escort to the hospital that was truly out of this world.
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In February 2023, when Josh Beale learned his son Drew would need a kidney transplant, Josh turned to Facebook, hoping the right person would see his call for help.
Months later, he found the hero he was looking for: Melvin Woods. Not from a galaxy far, far away, but from Athens, Ohio.
“Who would’ve thought a dad’s obsession would bring this about?” Josh Beale said. “I never in my wildest dreams could’ve thought this could happen.”
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“As a father, if my children were ever in need, I want someone to step up, too” Woods said. “I want them to show that this should be a normal reaction.”
Wood and Josh Beale met before as members of the 501st Legion, an international Star Wars costuming club that supports various non-profits and charitable organizations.
“The show of support is unreal,” Josh Beale said. “It truly does meet up with what the 501st motto is, which is, ‘Bad guys doing good.’ I can’t think of a better good than somebody donating life to my son.”
On Monday, from the Ronald McDonald House to Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Drew Beale got an escort unlike any other to celebrate what will soon be a new beginning and a gesture worthy of intergalactic praise.
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“To know that someone is stepping up to do something like that for your kid, I don’t have the words,” Josh Beale said. “Thank you isn’t enough. I’ve struggled so many times trying to express what this means and I just don’t have the words.”
Drew Beale and Woods will go into surgery Tuesday morning, and when all goes well, Drew will hopefully be out of the hospital in seven to ten days.
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