Fort Worth dad receives son's kidney after freak accident

FORT WORTH, Texas - The tragic death of a young man in Fort Worth means new life for his father after a successful kidney transplant.

Monica Castillo said her 22-year-old nephew, Symon Castillo, fell off a ledge on June 30 and suffered a brain injury. He was pronounced dead on July 5.

“To me, it was just a freak accident,” she said.

His father, Nate Castillo, was in desperate need of a kidney transplant. He was waiting for a match, which Symon turned out to be.

Doctors at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth and Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas made it happen quickly.

“Today we’ve been at Baylor and he just got out of surgery. And he has his son’s kidney,” Monica said.

Symon had signed up to be an organ donor. His heart and other kidney are also going to recipients in Houston. It’s some comfort for a family now mourning his loss.

“Anybody that knew him loved his smile. He was just amazing. He was just a giver,” his aunt said. “He’ll live on now with his father.”

The family said Nate faces a lengthy recovery. But he’ll live much longer now because of the kidney from his son.

“His father will always have a piece of him,” Monica said.