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Woman Gives her Boyfriend her Kidney for Valentine's Day

By Christine Hsu | Update Date: Feb 15, 2013 02:22 PM EST

A woman gave her boyfriend of less than a year a kidney this Valentine's Day.

Taesha Benson, 32, of Overland Park, Kansas decided to give up a kidney to her boyfriend of less than a year after she discovered that her kidney was a perfect match for Travis Spire-Sweet, 30, who was born with a partially functioning kidney, KAIT-TV reported.

When Travis was born, doctors told his parents that he would not survive past his first birthday. He had been on a donor's list for just over 12 months when his Taesha offered to give up her organ. Despite knowing Travis for less than 12 months, she said that she knew in her gut that it was "the right decision".

"Initially you think, 'How could I do that? I don't have it in me.' But over time I got to know Travis and his love of life," she said, according to the Daily News.

"Not many people come along who have his integrity, character and optimism. Travis just happens to be my boyfriend. He has provided me with a new love of life," Taesha said.

"You're not going to walk into this as a brave person. I walked into it complete scared out of my mind," she said, according to the Daily Mail. "You could see the fear on my face the day of the surgery and knew it was the right decision."

Taesha and Travis underwent surgery at Kansas City hospital in Missouri last week and spent Valentine's Day recovering at home.

Travis said that he was overwhelmed by Taesha's gift.

"I leaned over and saw that she was awake (after the surgery) and she was okay," he said. "And I was, like, 'That's the person who saved my life.' I couldn't have asked to do it with someone more precious and special."

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