Thursday, October 1, 2026
On the outside, he’s a typical eighth-grade boy — riding bikes with his friends, playing video games, a stellar student at H. Frank Carey High School — but on the inside, Elias Manolis is living with rapid kidney failure.
Elias and his family have been searching for a living kidney donor since November. The Franklin Square community has offered its support, with several other nonprofits involved including Howie’s Heart, whose focus is on spreading charitable actions.
Jennifer Camacho, of Franklin Square, a founder of Howie’s Heart, knows what it’s like to undergo the kidney donation process. Her brother, Camacho explained, donated a kidney to her husband three years ago. She acknowledged that it was a dark period for her, as a wife and mother.
“I really empathize with what the family must be going through,” Camacho said of the Manolises. “Knowing what they’re up against, and you know how they’re currently feeling, we just really wanted to help.”
That desire has prompted Camacho and Howie’s Heart to plan a fundraiser on March 19 to raise awareness, to spread messages of hope and to find a living kidney donor for Elias.
Brian Martindale, of Bay City, Michigan, the founder of Kidney for Kids, became a living kidney donor in 2013. At the time, 10-year-old Jessica Schwerin, a Michigan resident, needed a kidney, and Martindale donated his after he discovered they were a match. Schwerin now serves on the board of directors of the foundation, which is headquartered in Bay City, Michigan and both she and Martindale live healthy lives.
“I’m 64 years old living with one kidney, Martindale said. “When I donated in January 2013, I had been running a clothing brand line, and I have been running little clothing stores and experimented for a few months, but after donating four months later, I was climbing 100-foot towers at Dow Chemical and spray-painting and hauling 60 pounds of materials up with me.” When Martindale founded Kidney for Kids in 2022, that was when he honed in on spreading more awareness so children like Elias can live a long, healthy life.
Martindale underwent testing in the fall of 2013, and found out six weeks later that he and Jessica were a match. If you’re not a good match with someone in need, he said of the process, you still have the option to donate your kidney to another recipient. After the surgery, he added, “If you’re working a desk job, you can be back in two weeks with light work.”
Elias’s mother, Rita Manolis, said that having a living donor will increase her son’s life expectancy. The family has busied themselves with outreach to not only raise awareness for the cause, but to find that perfect kidney match. Elias was featured on News12 Long Island in November, and shortly afterward, Kidney for Kids reached out to his family.
During the holiday season, the Kids Need More foundation delivers presents to sick children in Christmas “buses,” and Howies Heart, who participates in the Holiday Cheer Bus, ended up being the Manolises’ sponsor for the event, and connected with them after finding out more about Elias.
Next month’s fundraiser will be the first one for Howie’s Heart, which will celebrate its two-year anniversary this month, and the charity is continuously posting on its social media pages to help garner support for the Manolis family. The search for a kidney for Elias continues, as heartfelt messages are exchanged online, raising awareness of his condition. He is currently in the care of doctors from the NYU Langone health system.
Potential donors for Elias can be filled out here: https://nyulh.donorscreen.org/register/now?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio
You can also visit https://www.howiesheart.org/ for ticket sales.
