He only went to check his blood type at a county fair — and ended up giving his fiancée’s best friend a second chance at life
Blood donation is a noble cause because you never know how a small contribution may save someone's life. When Medina County farmer Courtney Miller's friend's fiancé, Kyle, was at the Lorain County Fair, he noticed a mobile blood drive. Curious to learn his blood type, he decided to donate blood. Unbeknownst to him, his blood donation was going to save his fiancée's best friend, Courtney Miller's life, after she was diagnosed with autoimmune liver disease. As reported by News5 Cleveland on Monday, January 19, 2026, Kyle's story now serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of donating blood.
Medina County farmer and mother Courtney Miller was diagnosed with autoimmune liver disease in 2014. In 2023, Miller was told by her doctors that she wouldn't survive her 30s without a liver transplant. However, she found her match most unexpectedly. In 2024, Kyle, who was dating Courtney's friend Brooke, visited the opening of the Lorain County Fair when he saw a mobile blood drive. Kyle, who never knew his blood type, grew curious to learn about it. He walked up to the Vitalant blood booth and asked if they could test his blood type. He donated his blood, but what he found later stunned him. Kyle found that he was a match for Courtney and decided to go through a few screenings. "They even go through and see, do his veins and his ducts line up with where mine would be in the liver? It's quite the extensive process that someone went through for me," Courtney said.
In November 2024, the surgery was successful, and Courtney spent 52 days in the hospital post-transplant. Additionally, during one of the procedures, she had lost blood and required two blood transfusions. A 2021 study published by the National Library of Medicine noted that awareness of blood supply and demand has increased rapidly in developed and developing countries. As per the data, 89% of respondents, comprising both men and women, believe blood donation is an important service. Nearly half showcased their willingness to donate blood voluntarily. Many also viewed it as an act of national responsibility, urging more awareness be spread on the subject. For the unversed, January is celebrated as National Blood Donor Month, and there indeed must be more promotion of this noble service.
Though some hesitate to donate blood, one mother's cord blood donation more than a decade ago proved lifesaving. In another story, teenager Lyra Cassell was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a rare form of cancer. When chemotherapy failed to improve her condition, doctors suggested that her only chance of surviving was through a stem cell transplant. Miraculously, a 12-year-old vial of cord blood donated by a mother in a Spanish hospital in 2010 was available. In 2022, Lyra received a transplant using just 20 milliliters of the preserved umbilical cord blood. She was declared cancer-free and is now in her twenties, living a healthy life. Lyra credits her second chance at life to the woman who chose to donate.
Miller, who expressed her gratitude toward Kyle, emphasized the importance of promoting blood donor awareness. If it weren't for Kyle's generous heart and willingness to come forward to help his fiancée's friend, Miller may have struggled to find a match for her liver transplant.