A father from Mineola will soon be getting a kidney from his daughter in Hauppauge.

"Tears rolled down my eyes. It was a very emotional day. We hugged. It was very emotional," says Matt Carlson, when he found out his daughter, Stephanie Trotti, was a match and would donate a kidney to him.

“I want my father to be healthy,” says Trotti. “Even though I'm helping my dad, he's the hero in my eyes."

Carlson inherited polycystic kidney disease, which his mother died from. The kidney transplant will be performed by a Northwell Health medical team on Jan. 8.

Carlson is the general manager of Rallye BMW in Westbury.

After hearing about his condition, the dealership came up with the idea to raise awareness of the critical need for organ donations in the state.

New York ranks the second lowest in the national organ donor registry.

“We need about three million New Yorkers to register to get New York's registry to the middle of the pack," said Aisha Tator, executive director of Donate Life NYS.

Leadership from Rallye Motor Company, Donate Life New York State and the New York State Automobile Dealers Association joined Long Island residents to raise awareness about the life-changing impact of organ, eye and tissue donation.

According to Donate Life NYS, more than 103,000 Americans, including nearly 8,000 New Yorkers, are currently on the waitlist for an organ. In New York, while nearly 3,300 New Yorkers were saved in 2023 through organ donation, roughly 400 people on the transplant waitlist die each year due to a shortage of donors.

In Nassau County, approximately 40% of eligible residents are registered organ and tissue donors, with 51% in Suffolk County.

Carlson said he will dedicate the rest of his life to spreading organ donation awareness.

“Don't take life for granted. It can be taken away from you in a second,” he says.

To find information on how to donate an organ, click here. To learn how to navigate the system as an organ recipient, click here.