Matawan Man Appears On 'The Drew Barrymore Show' After Donating Kidney

MATAWAN, NJ — On Tuesday of this week, two teachers at Saint Leo the Great School in Middletown appeared on "The Drew Barrymore Show."

The teachers are Mike Daneman, 33, a Matawan resident, and Lauren Crupi, 37, who lives in Middletown.

They were asked to appear on the show because earlier this year Daneman donated one of his kidneys to Crupi, who was in end-stage kidney failure.

You can watch a sneak peek of their interview with Barrymore here.

"Barrymore was very nice; she's very genuine in person and she seemed very interested in the story," said Daneman. "What you see on camera with her is what you get. Our story definitely resonated with her, and she kept telling me she was grateful to people like me."

The show even surprised the two teachers with their own paid vacation to Garza Blanca Resort and Spa in Los Cabos, Mexico. They each received a ticket for themselves plus a guest to the resort; Crupi said she will bring her husband (they will leave the kids home in Middletown). Daneman said he will bring a guest, too and the two teachers may even try to take their vacation together.

"Today is Mike's birthday actually and I just texted him this morning to say I'm so grateful you're alive!" said Crupi. "What he did was selfless, and I want more people to be aware of organ donation."

Daneman decided to give his kidney to Crupi in June, after he learned she had been battling a rare and deadly genetic kidney disease for the past 15 years. Last winter, doctors told Crupi she would be on dialysis within a year. Saint Leo the Great told all its staff about Crupi's condition and asked people to consider donating. Daneman was one of the first people to volunteer right away. Several other people Crupi knew also volunteered, including her husband, but they were not a match.

Daneman decided to donate his kidney for a very touching reason: His mother died of cancer when he was 5. Crupi has a 5-year-old daughter and he said he never wanted to see another child grow up without a mother.

The segment was actually filmed last Wednesday, Oct. 18, at the CBS studio in Manhattan. CBS sent two cars down to Middletown for each of them. They appeared on the show for about 10 minutes total.

The transplant was done June 1, and both the giver and the receiver say they feel great.

Crupi's and Daneman's story was reported by Patch, the Asbury Park Press, Tap Into and picked up by Good Morning, America. "The Jennifer Hudson Show" has also asked them to appear. If you want to watch the Drew Barrymore show, it's Season 4, Episode 13 and now streaming on Paramount Plus.

Daneman teaches computer science at the Catholic elementary school in Lincroft, and Crupi teaches sixth and seventh-grade language arts.

Middletown Teacher Donated His Kidney To Fellow Teacher (Sept. 7)