By Carol Britton Meyer

Hull resident Bob White is in need of a new kidney and is reaching out to the community that he has called home for his entire life to help him find a suitable donor.

**SEARCHING FOR A MATCH.** Bob White, shown with canine friend Mrs. Beasley, is hopeful to find a matching kidney donor. [Skip Tull photo]

To help get the word out, a few months ago his friend Justin Goodwin made a sign for White’s truck with his name, photograph, cell phone number, and the message, “I need a kidney ASAP” and posted it on Facebook.

“That night my phone rang at 7 p.m., and it was a woman from Hull who said she had two perfectly good kidneys and would like to donate one of them to me,” White told the Hull Times. After meeting with her, the long process to determine whether her kidney was compatible began at Massachusetts General Hospital, with the outcome not yet known.

In the meantime, White, who admits he’s not very tech-savvy, received a message on his cell phone from a potential donor but deleted it by mistake.

“I’m not sure what town he was from,” he said. “I’m hopeful that someone will come forward who is compatible. I received my first new kidney from my sister 12 years ago, but now I need and would appreciate a new one. I pray every day.”

White is on dialysis Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for 5-1/2 hours each time, which he finds more challenging than he did the first time.

“I was on nighttime dialysis for 1-1/2 years before I got the transplant and then plowed snow for 24 hours and I felt fine,” he said.

Another Hull resident also expressed an interest in possibly donating a kidney, but there has been no recent word.

White, who retired from the Hull Department of Public Works four years ago, greatly enjoyed his job.

“I applied for a position with the DPW in 1977. One night before I was hired, I received a call at 11 p.m. asking me to plow snow – and I did – which led to my getting a job there,” he said.

Growing up in Hull, White had an eye-catching view of Boston Light, and later moved to his current home on Nantasket Avenue.

In the 1970s, he started lobstering in his 40-foot boat, which continued for about 20 years.

White said he “really loves life” and appreciates the care that his two sisters, Ellen Kimball and Laura Woodbury, and his partner, Leslie “Sassy” (the name her niece Lisa called her when she was unable to pronounce her real name) Sullivan, are providing for him while they remain optimistic that a kidney donor who is compatible will step forward. All three are Hull residents.

“I know a lot of people in this close-knit community, and they are very considerate and always willing to help one another,” White said.

Sullivan, White’s partner for 15 years, was with him during his first transplant.

“The first one went well, and while things are uncertain at this time, we remain hopeful. That’s all we can do. It’s a long process that won’t happen overnight,” she said. “Bob is a very hard worker. He did his job for the town, then lobstering, and he would help anyone. I feel badly now because he is low on energy, but we’re holding on to hope – that’s all we can do now – and pray.”

In the meantime, White continues to be a big NASCAR fan and enjoys spending time with Sullivan’s dog, Mrs. Beasley.

Another Hull friend, Sandie Grauds, called White ”a very generous, genuine person with such a big heart. He’s the kind of guy who would donate a kidney. I don’t want him to lose hope. I know the people of Hull and the heart they have.”