Little kidney patient's link to Lomu

Mya Tamatea, 9, her brother Mason, 7, and mum Kathryn Puohotaua at Auckland Airport yesterday to start their adventure. Photo / Greg Bowker

A 9-year-old Wanganui girl and All Black great Jonah Lomu have two things in common: determination and the gift of a second chance at life by kidney donations - from the Kereama family.

As little Mya Tamatea started a dream trip to Hong Kong Disneyland at Auckland Airport yesterday, it was revealed she owed her new life to "Aunty J", who turns out to be the sister of Grant Kereama, who donated a kidney to Lomu in July 2004.

Justine Kereama, 33, had surgery at Auckland City Hospital in February and soon after, Mya received her new kidney.

For two years, Mya had been hooking up to the tubes of a dialysis machine at the Starship hospital to have her blood cleared of the toxins that her chronically diseased kidneys could not cope with.

Yesterday, her brown eyes filled with delight, Mya had left the years of sickness behind her. With her parents, Kath Puohotaua and Richard Tamatea, and her brothers Jackson and Mason, she arrived at the Cathay Pacific departure lounge to start an eight-day holiday, all expenses paid.

Support group Kidney Kids had decorated the lounge in Disneyland style with balloons and bunting and arranged for a welcome by entertainer Princess Zappolina.

Her tearful parents acknowledged the generosity of the sponsors of the $25,000 holiday and also that of a "great friend" who had donated a kidney to their daughter.

Last night, Justine Kereama, speaking from her home in Western Australia, said she had admired the gesture of her big brother, Grant.

"He has always had a big heart and if he can help someone, he will.

"When you do something, you do it for your own reasons, and for me it was my subconscious ... rather than making a conscious decision."

The story of how the mother of two girls came to give Mya a kidney is a story about love - and chance.

Justine Kereama grew up in Wanganui with Mya's mother and her family.

"We have been friends for years, but I moved to Wellington about three years ago and unbeknown to me Kath and her family moved up to Auckland for two years to be with Mya.

"I had no idea that Mya was sick until I happened across an update on her health that Kath had put on Bebo. I immediately contacted Kath and I said I'd help.

"I just wanted to. I couldn't let my friends' child suffer. We had the same blood type, O positive, and I went through a number of health tests.

"Kath couldn't physically talk about it for days but Richard and I kept in touch.

"I was in really good health, so it was not a risk for me - the emotional trauma would have been the greatest thing."

At the time of the surgery, Justine Kereama and her partner, Alan Nepia, were in the process of selling their home and moving household and daughters, aged 15 and 9, to Australia, where Alan had a job in the goldmines.

Her parents also had serious health setbacks, and for the surgery she had to take leave from her job as media manager with Adcorp advertising agency in Wellington.

Like brother Grant, Ms Kereama did not seek publicity about being a kidney donor. Lomu did get a chance to publicly thank Grant Kereama in 2007 when TV One screened a This Is Your Life programme on the rugby star.

He embraced Kereama and told him: "You have been my guardian angel, you have given me an opportunity to live a full life and a complete life. I could never repay you for what you have done, or [Kereama's wife] Polly or your kids. To me it is the utmost ... thing that I could ever think that anybody could give."

Kidney Kids chief executive Paul Norfolk said one of the first things Mya said when she came out of surgery was that she wanted to go to Disneyland.

"Kidney Kids made it happen with the help of Ronald McDonald House, Southern Stars Charitable Trust, Cathay Pacific, Mazda Foundation, the Lions Club of Wanganui and a number of small contributors."