BAY MINETTE, Ala. — Doctors were amazed when Brittany Clay’s kidney began to process waste moments after her father’s left kidney was transplanted.

They also were amazed at her short, one-week convalescence at the University of Alabama-Birmingham hospitals.

“When the kidney began to produce urine, one physician said, ‘What is this? It usually takes up to eight hours,’” a surgeon said in a post-operation patient conversation after the four-hour surgery, according to Mack Clay, her father.

The Baldwin County High School senior discovered she had high blood pressure five years ago during a routine physical exam. The cause was a urinary tract infection and reflux of urine in her kidneys — a common ailment for girls which generally clears itself up by age 8, the father said.

Kidney damage forced dialysis and a search for a kidney, which ended close to home.

Both Mack and Tonya Clay, Brittany’s mother, were compatible donors, but the father was a closer match.

Mack’s left kidney was transplanted behind Brittany’s right pelvis for support and protection, the father said, and the damaged kidneys were not removed.

The father was discharged from the University of Alabama-Birmingham hospital June 13, a day after surgery. Brittany was moved to the UAB Children’s hospital for recovery and released a week after the operation.

Both said they felt fine Tuesday. Brittany, 17, said she felt much better and was relieved to end the time consuming, three-days-a-week trips to a Pensacola hospital for four-hour dialysis.

Throughout her ordeal, Brittany remained current in her classes at BCHS and continued to participate as a Tigerette, and as a representative of the North Baldwin Chamber of Commerce Delta Belles and Beaux. She also did not interrupt her ballet, jazz and hiphop dance classes twice a week in Daphne.

Next week, she heads to the school campus for rookie camp, where new band members are taught how to march. Then she begins band camp.

“I feel fine,” she said Tuesday. “I have some, but not many, restrictions. I did not slow down before and I am not now.”

Mack said he has been listening to emergency radios and is eager to return to work and his role as a volunteer firefigher at Crossroads and Bay Minette.

“I feel no different, but I have to wait another month before doing anything strenuous because my abdominal muscles were cut and need time to heal,” he said.

“I put myself down as a donor at age 16 when I got a license. I always believed in it, but didn’t expect this. Lots of people die because they don’t get the transplant they need.

“I wish we could do a better job in getting organs donated by setting up harvesting programs.”

Mack, 38, cited other states which have implemented ambulances equipped to harvest organs.

“Here, you wait for a coroner and that may take two hours, then there are other delays and organs that could help someone end up being useless.”

The two must travel to Birmingham weekly for evaluations, and insurance coverage has not assumed all medical costs.

Donations can be sent to the Brittany Clay Fund at any Regions Bank. The father also is offering 8- to 10-pound smoked Boston butts for $25 to help with medical expenses. For information, call (251) 421-1988.