Photo caption: Father J.C. Garrett, pictured during Holy Thursday Mass at St. John the Baptist Parish, Allentown, in 2024, is recovering steadily after receiving a new kidney July 22. Mike Ehrmann photo
By Carol Olivieri, Correspondent, and Staff Reports
Father J.C. Garrett is on the mend with a new kidney and a remarkable story to share. After a successful transplant surgery on July 22, Father Garrett’s donated kidney began functioning right away, allowing him to return home on July 25.
Also recuperating from her own surgery is Niurka Gonzalez, Father Garrett’s donor partner in the Paired Exchange Program, an organization that helps when a potential donor and a recipient do not match. Gonzalez’s compassionate decision to help Father Garrett, inspired by a chance detour in her usual Sunday Mass routine, transformed her life and those of two others. Though she ultimately wasn’t a match for Father Garrett, her decision set in motion key developments that led to his transplant: Her kidney was transplanted into another person, which in turn freed up a compatible kidney through the PEP for Father Garrett.
Fittingly, Gonzalez’s kidney donation procedure occurred on July 23, just a day after Father Garrett’s, and she was also discharged on July 25. She reports that her recovery “has been very quick and complication-free.”
Difficult Journey
Father Garrett, age 61, was diagnosed with chronic kidney failure in 2022, requiring him to undergo dialysis treatments three times per week and pull back from active ministry in the Diocese of Trenton. He began a multifaceted campaign to find a kidney for transplant, getting on a waiting list for a cadaver’s donated kidney and exploring the possibility of a live kidney donation. Neither option promised a quick turnaround.
A native son of the Diocese of Trenton, Father Garrett has served as parochial vicar in St. James Parish, Red Bank; Our Lady of Sorrows-St. Anthony Parish, Hamilton; St. Theresa Parish, Little Egg Harbor, and St. Mary Parish, Barnegat. He was last assigned to Resurrection Parish, Delran.
Readers first heard about Father Garrett’s health journey in November 2025 when he wrote a column for The Monitor about “casting a wider net” to find a kidney donor. In the column, Father Garrett described the difficult effects of dialysis.
With a waiting list of 100,000 prospective recipients, it can take more than five years to receive a kidney transplant, the majority of donations coming from people who die from motor vehicle accidents, head injuries or other fatal events. The long wait can be devastating.
To minimize delay, people try to identify a living donor. No one Father Garrett knew was both a match and medically eligible.
So he decided to be more proactive and created a webpage. Because he continued to assist on the weekends in St. John the Baptist Parish, Allentown, and Mary, Mother of the Church Parish, Bordentown, he started sharing his story there.
Compassion Connection
Niurka Gonzalez, who usually attends Mass in St. Raphael-Holy Angels Parish, Hamilton, happened to go one weekend to St. John the Baptist Church where she heard Father Garrett speak. Compelled to help, she underwent the testing and was medically eligible but not a match.
Gonzalez didn’t let the story end there. Instead, she enrolled in the Paired Exchange Program. Father Garrett was familiar with this program but hadn’t been optimistic that anyone would want to do it.
Father Garrett and Gonzalez entered the Paired Exchange Program. A few weeks ago, Father Garrett learned that a match had been found for him. The new kidney came from a woman in Utah who recently underwent removal. On July 22, it was transplanted into Father Garrett. His recovery involved several days in the hospital, followed by weeks of frequent medical appointments, two months of isolation to prevent rejection, and a lifetime of anti-rejection drugs.
Father Garrett looks forward to returning to active ministry since, as he says, “Being a priest is not what I do. It’s who I am.”
Call for Prayers
Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., issued a call for prayer in advance of Father Garrett’s surgery. He writes, “I invite all the clergy and faithful of the Diocese of Trenton to join me in prayer for one of our priests, Father J.C. Garrett, who has, at long last, located a kidney donor for transplant surgery on July 22.”
The Bishop continued, “Father J.C. has patiently endured his kidney disease for a long time now while still ministering in local parishes. Let us all pray for him, for the success of his transplant surgery and recovery, and for his surgical team. Let us also offer grateful prayers for the donors who have made this kidney transplant possible. May our Blessed Mother intercede for you, Father J.C., as her beloved Son watches over you and brings you his healing strength.”
For his part, Father Garrett is amazed by and grateful for the generosity of so many people who have offered to help him throughout this period. He welcomes ongoing prayer for himself and invites the faithful to pray for kidney donors and health care providers who will be supporting them.