RIVERBEND - Yelena Gass-Bronstein believes in the kindness of strangers.
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After spending 26 years as a registered nurse at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, including several months on the frontlines during the COVID-19 pandemic, Gass-Bronstein is in the same position as her patients: She’s asking a stranger to save her life. Gass-Bronstein is one of the 90,000 people in the U.S. who currently need a kidney transplant, and she’s looking for a living kidney donor who would be willing to give her that gift.
“Transplantation is an amazing journey that tests the limits of human strength and courage,” she said. “It requires commitment and faith as well as mental, emotional and physical endurance. It is one of life’s greatest challenges, and you know what is the reward? The life itself. All of us, we want to live, because life is so good.”
Gass-Bronstein was on the kidney transplant list two years ago, when her doctor gave her “the best and newest medication on the market” to slow the progression of her kidney disease. For two years, she focused on eating well, exercising every day, and taking her medication at exactly the right time.
But the medication stopped working, and Gass-Bronstein was put back onto the transplant list on July 28, 2025.
“It was a mixture of emotions,” she remembered. “Of course, it was huge frustration, it was fear, it was fear of the unknown. It was shock, but it wasn’t shock. The nature of kidney disease is progressive. So I knew that this medication might give me some break, but it will come to the same outcome: I will have to go through transplantation.”
As a nurse, Gass-Bronstein knows a lot about the kidney transplant process. She explained that when you call the Barnes-Jewish Transplant Center at 314-362-5365, they can talk you through the process of becoming a living kidney donor.
To begin, you’ll fill out several questionnaires, then undergo a few tests. If you’re a match, the tests will become more detailed.
Gass-Bronstein has Type A+ blood, but Barnes-Jewish Transplant Center has a program that allows you to donate a kidney in her name if you aren’t specifically a match for her; she will then receive a matching kidney from another donor. This means anyone can donate to help Gass-Bronstein, regardless of blood type. You can read more about the kidney donor matching program here.
Gass-Bronstein emphasized that Barnes-Jewish Hospital is a great hospital, and the procedure is “very established,” “sophisticated” and safe in 2025.
“I was a bedside nurse, always helping my patients through their worst and most difficult times of hospitalization,” she said. “[Barnes-Jewish Hospital] is one of the best transplantation centers in the nation. I’m lucky to live in St. Louis and be able to become a patient there.”
She noted that her insurance will cover all medical expenses for both herself and the donor, and most donors are out of the hospital in two days and back to their normal lives within a few weeks. There are even one-kidney clubs where people can spend time together and bond over their experiences.
As Gass-Bronstein prepares for the transplant, her family, including her “soulmate” husband and their daughter, are hopeful that someone in the community will step forward to give her this gift.
The family encourages people to follow Gass-Bronstein’s journey on the “Kidney Donor Needed for Yelena” Facebook page. If you have any questions about the process, or if you want to know more about potentially becoming a donor for Gass-Bronstein, contact her at kidney4yelena@yahoo.com.
Despite the challenges, Gass-Bronstein still holds onto hope.
“I’m waiting for your emails. I am constantly checking my phone in hopes that maybe today. Maybe today, my angel will step forward,” she said. “I have faith in the kindness of strangers. I do. I am optimistic. That's all I can do. I am hopeful and optimistic. I believe in human kindness.”
