BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Bakersfield artist Chris Rodriguez never gave up hope—even when doctors told him he no longer qualified for a life-saving kidney transplant. Now, after nearly a decade of fighting, he's celebrating his second chance at life.

Chris: "This is weird... my heart just started boom, boom, boom—could it be a call? Could it be a kidney? And that's when they called me and told me, 'We have a possible match for you. We're running some more tests, and if everything goes well, we'll need you to come in as soon as possible.'

Chris was just 21 in 2011 when doctors told him his kidneys were only functioning at 4% and that he could die. Chris: "With that one sentence, my life flipped upside down. If you want to get off dailies, you're going to need a transplant—but that take

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