I’ve spent much of my life believing that when people are given an opportunity to help someone, most will do whatever they can. I’ve witnessed extraordinary generosity from complete strangers, watched communities rally around families in crisis, and seen people with very little give more than anyone could reasonably expect. Those experiences have strengthened my faith in humanity, even during some of the most difficult moments of my own life. But lately, as I continue searching for a kidney donor who could save my life, I’ve found myself wrestling with a question that I believe deserves a thoughtful, honest conversation.
Does a person’s ability to receive help depend, at least in part, on how famous that person happens to be?
Before anyone misunderstands me, let me make something abundantly clear. I celebrate every life that is saved, every family that receives help, and every celebrity who uses their influence to lift someone else. When entertainers, athletes, and public figures come together to raise money for someone facing hardship, that generosity deserves applause. Compassion should never be criticized simply because its recipient happens to be famous.
But watching those extraordinary displays of support has caused me to wonder about something deeper.
What happens to the people whose stories never reach the right rooms?
When You Have Spent Your Life Helping Others Be Heard
My name is Rev. Dr. Steven Mills. I’m a pastor, broadcaster, pianist, husband, father, and two-time cancer survivor. For years, I’ve worked in an industry built around connecting people. I’ve helped introduce artists to audiences, supported community causes, and used microphones to tell stories that deserved to be heard.
Today, I find myself on the other side of that microphone.
After surviving Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a bone marrow transplant, and colon cancer, the treatments that helped save my life also contributed to kidney failure. I now depend on dialysis, and my heart has suffered significant damage. Because I am extremely highly sensitized, finding a medically compatible living kidney donor is extraordinarily difficult.
I am not searching for a luxury, a business opportunity, or an invitation to an exclusive event.
I am searching for a chance to keep living.
And I’ve been doing everything I know how to do to find it.
I’ve shared my story publicly. I’ve spoken with radio and television personalities. I’ve reached out to influential entertainers, technology leaders, executives, journalists, and philanthropists. I’ve asked people with enormous audiences to consider sharing my story, making an introduction, or helping the message reach someone willing to explore living kidney donation.
Some have helped tremendously. Others may never have seen my messages. Some may simply be overwhelmed with requests of their own.
I understand that. No one owes me a personal response, and I don’t believe silence automatically means someone lacks compassion.
But I cannot ignore the larger question.
Why Does Recognition Sometimes Open Doors That Need Should Open?
We live in a remarkable age. A famous person’s crisis can become a worldwide conversation in hours. Millions of dollars can sometimes be raised through a single network of influential friends. An entertainer can make one telephone call and reach someone an ordinary person might spend months trying to contact.
There is nothing wrong with that.
The question is whether we can use those same extraordinary networks to help people who don’t already have access to them.
I don’t believe celebrity lives are considered more valuable by everyone. I do believe celebrity creates visibility, visibility creates connections, and connections can create opportunities that are not equally available to everyone.
And when the issue is survival, those differences matter.
A famous person deserves compassion. So does the person who works at the grocery store. So does the teacher, the pastor, the mechanic, the single parent, and the person sitting alone during another exhausting dialysis treatment.
The value of a human life should never be determined by the size of an audience.
Yet the size of an audience can profoundly affect how many people hear a plea for help.
That is the uncomfortable distinction I hope we can begin to change.
I’m Not Asking Anyone to Care Less About Celebrities
I’m asking whether we can find ways to care more broadly.
Imagine what might happen if even a small number of the people who can mobilize millions for a friend decided to use that same reach to help someone they’ve never met.
Imagine a major artist sharing a kidney donor appeal between concert announcements. Imagine a nationally recognized broadcaster giving a patient sixty seconds to tell a story. Imagine a technology leader helping connect transplant organizations with audiences that have never considered living donation.
Imagine celebrities helping people become visible rather than waiting for people to become famous before they receive help.
That’s the kind of leadership I would love to celebrate.
And I would be the first person standing in line to thank them.
An Invitation to the People Who Can Reach Millions
I’ve publicly reached out to people including Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, MrBeast, Joe Rogan, Robin Roberts, and others because I recognize the extraordinary influence they possess.
I haven’t reached out because I believe they owe me something.
I’ve reached out because I believe their influence could help accomplish something beautiful.
A single post might introduce my story to someone who is medically compatible. A conversation might inspire someone to become a living kidney donor. An introduction could connect my campaign with organizations that know how to reach potential donors.
And even if none of those things results in a kidney for me, the awareness could help another patient whose story has never been told.
That’s a legacy worth creating.
The challenge isn’t to prove that famous people are generous. Many already are.
The challenge is to make extraordinary generosity available to people who aren’t famous.
My Life Is Not a Headline to Me
Every morning I wake up, I am grateful to be here. Every dialysis treatment is another reminder that survival can be both a blessing and a struggle. I still have sermons to preach, music to play, stories to tell, people to love, and a future I desperately want to experience.
I don’t expect anyone to stop living their life because mine has become difficult. I don’t expect a celebrity to solve every problem or a wealthy person to fund every worthy cause.
But I do believe that sometimes the greatest gift a powerful person can offer costs absolutely nothing.
A moment of attention.
A thoughtful introduction.
A willingness to say, “This person matters, too.”
Joshua Liljenquist and thousands of generous people have already demonstrated what that kind of compassion looks like. Their efforts have helped my story reach millions, and I will never stop being grateful.
But the person who may be able to donate a compatible kidney still hasn’t been found.
That is why I continue asking.
Not because the world has failed me, but because I believe the world still has the capacity to do something extraordinary.
The Question I Hope We Will All Consider
If we can come together so beautifully when a famous person needs help, what might happen if we extended that same spirit to someone whose name we don’t recognize?
What if influence were measured not only by the number of people who follow us, but by the number of people we help others see?
What if the next great act of celebrity generosity wasn’t a fundraiser for another celebrity, but a worldwide invitation to help a stranger?
I am not asking the world to choose between famous people and ordinary people.
I’m asking us to remember that there are no ordinary lives.
And somewhere in this world, there may be one person who can help save mine.
If you are reading this, perhaps you can help my story reach that person.
If you have a platform, please consider lending me a moment of it. If you have a connection, perhaps you can make an introduction. If you have neither, you still have the power to share this story with someone who might.
And if you are willing to explore living kidney donation, I would be deeply grateful for the opportunity to connect you with the appropriate medical professionals for confidential evaluation.
Because at the end of the day, this isn’t about celebrity.
It’s about humanity.
It’s about love.
And it’s about making sure that when someone is fighting for their life, we don’t require them to become famous before we decide they’re worth hearing.
Please help me find my one.
FindMyOne.org
Living donor information:
https://www.hcamidwest.com/patient-resources/living-donor-program
Joshua Liljenquist’s GoFundMe:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-pastor-steven-fight-for-his-life-p74hx
My interview on The TJ Show:
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-the-tj-show-107933196/episode/steven-mills-346784072/
KAKE-TV coverage:
https://archive.joshliljenquist.com/media/watch/kake-news-josh-liljenquist-garden-city-kidney-donor/
Joshua’s original video:
https://www.lemon8-app.com/@joshlilj/7669122830998569486?region=us
Rev. Dr. Steven Mills
President and Publisher, On The Dial
DON’T LET IT STOP WITH YOU.
#FindMyOne #DoYouSeeMe #DontLetItStopWithYou #EveryLifeMatters #NoOrdinaryLives #KidneyDonorNeeded #LivingKidneyDonation #CelebrityInfluence #PowerOfCompassion #UseYourPlatform #HumanityFirst #OneMillionVoices #ShareToSaveALife #KidneyTransplant #LoveOutLoud