CRESTLINE — A retired Crestline pastor and his family had a lot to celebrate this Christmas.

Dave Greenich, who was the pastor at the Crestline Nazarene Church for a little more than 27 years while working for 30 years at Timken, recently was given the gift of life through a kidney transplant. He is the husband of Neva, father to two adult sons, Steve and David, and grandfather of six.

While Dave and Neva reside at Walton Lake near Crestline for most of the year, they are in Florida for the winter months.

“Walton Lake closes for the winter every year and opens back up on April 1,” Neva said.

Dave was told he needed a kidney transplant in 2018 and was put on the list at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center to receive one.

Neva said that they made the decision to go to their home near Engelwood, Florida, for the winter months last year but then the Ohio State University hospital called last December to tell them a kidney had just become available for Dave.

“We only had a few hours to get there and could not make it,” Neva said. “We were devastated.”

Dave said as his kidney numbers continued to plunge, he had to start dialysis.

“I was able to do it at home while I was sleeping, which I am grateful for,” he said.

The couple worried that a kidney may not become available in time for Dave, but he took it all in stride through his faith in God.

“That kidney was not meant for me, it was meant for someone else,” Dave said.

The couple returned to Ohio, staying in the Apple Valley area for a month at a friend’s house that was up for sale.

“We then moved to a place in Mansfield that is owned by one of Dave’s friends,” Neva said.

During this time, Neva remembered that a woman who had been part of their congregation in Crestline had told her of a friend of her’s may be interested in donating a kidney to Dave.

“So, I called Robin Winkler to find out the information,” Neva said.

Winkler said she was considering donating a kidney to the pastor who introduced her to Jesus when she was young and began attending his church with her mother.

The staff at OSU sent the necessary paperwork to Winkler and she began the testing process to ensure she could donate a kidney to her former pastor.

“She had to go through extensive testing, so it took months,” Neva said.

On April 1 that year, Neva and Dave returned home to Walnut Lake, hopeful that everything would go smoothly for his chance at a new kidney.

“On May 24, 2019, Dave received the greatest gift of all,” Neva said.

Neva said Winkler was in one room and Dave next door in another.

“They implanted her kidney and it was functioning before Dave was even off the operating table,” Neva said.

Winkler said Pastor Greenich is a very special person in her life so when she heard he needed a kidney, she was glad to be able to help.

“I didn’t consider myself at first but feel like God just orchestrated my life so perfectly that I was available for time off work and able financially to do it,” Winkler said. “So, I gladly did.”

She said the old adage that it is better to give than to receive is very true.

“What better gift to give than the gift of life? I’m still blown away that God would use me to extend the life of someone else,” Winkler said.

Dave said he is forever grateful for Winkler’s gift of life.

“I was never Superman but not being able to lift something as small as a gallon of milk or be able to do the things I was once capable of doing was very hard for me,” Dave said. “Because of Robin, I am back to my old self.”

Dave cites the Bible verse Romans 8:28 in explaining the gift of life he received from his friend.

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

Winkler said others should consider donating a kidney if possible.

“If you can, do it. The pain was minimal. The rewards are great. And no, I don’t have to take meds or any special diet. I am blessed with good health and God allowed me to use that for someone else. The fact that it was the man that introduced me to Jesus, just made it that much more special,” Winkler said.

For more information on donating, visit the website of the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center website.