She’s an angel ... Erin Durga at Pat Mertens’ bed side. Picture: GoFundMe Patrick Mertens needed a kidney, and, feeling desperate, his daughter, Kayla, posted a request on Facebook in January. Patrick, 64, a school custodian, hadn’t bothered asking his coworkers at Kimball Elementary School, as he searched for a donor. He didn’t want to inconvenience any of the teachers at the school, and he thought they had already done enough for him by setting up a fundraiser to support his dialysis. But when Erin Durga, a thirdgrade teacher at the school, saw the Facebook post, she knew she wanted to help. So she reached out and after some tests learned that she was a match.