Wesley Chapel couple who was match for kidney transplant run in Gasparilla Distance Classic 5k

TAMPA, Fla. - Andrea and Aaron Barnes set off to complete the Gasparilla Distance Classic 5k race for the first time together on Saturday morning.

While it was an exciting morning for couples alike, this was an experience that meant more to them than you could imagine.

With three children and more than two decades of marriage under their belt, the Wesley Chapel couple always knew they were a great match.

But they didn't realize they were quite literally the PERFECT match, until Aaron Barnes's health declined in 2022 from kidney failure, and it was time for a transplant.

"I was just sick, and I was waiting and waiting and trying to get myself to be able to qualify for a transplant regardless of whether I knew she was gonna be a donor or not," Aaron Barnes recalled. "I needed to get on that list."

"That year he was on dialysis was the roughest year on our family," Andrea Barnes added.

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Turns out, the love of Aaron Barnes's life was the one who could give him a second chance at it.

"Finding out I was a match was incredible," Andrea Barnes added. "Just knowing that you're strong enough and healthy enough, because it's very hard to qualify, so when I qualified I just knew my work wasn't in vain, all these years taking care of myself was worth it, and the transplant was amazing."

"The minute I woke up from surgery I instantly knew I was better," Aaron Barnes stressed.

Less than a year after their surgeries, Aaron Barnes is thankful for his health and being able to join his wife for activities like completing this race.

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But he's eternally grateful she gave him the piece that allowed them to keep their family whole.

"For them to be able to get their dad back, it's just beautiful," Andrea Barnes stressed. "My daughter just went to a daddy-daughter dance with him last week, he hangs with the boys, and he's doing dad stuff that he was always meant to do, just to have him back is like, 'Thank you.'"

Andrea Barnes has always thrived as a fitness instructor, but in May, the Barnes family will open up their own personal fitness center in Lutz called "Healthy Steps & Fitness."

It will be dedicated to helping kidney dialysis patients stay healthy enough to make the national kidney transplant list.

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