Rick Wallace is a teacher, coach and administrator at Blocker Middle School in Texas City, Texas. He has spent nearly three decades molding young people through academics and athletics. Tyreese Williams was molded under Wallace’s tutelage. The two met more than 20 years ago in Banquete, Texas, just outside of Corpus Christi. Wallace served as defensive coordinator for the high school football team and Williams joined the team as a freshman. Williams flourished at Banquete High. He earned good grades and played basketball and ran track in addition to football. During his sophomore year, Williams’ father landed a better paying job in another city. But the family liked the situation Tyreese was in and did not want him to move. So father and son conceived a plan to keep Williams at Banquete. The 15-year-old would live alone. Wallace objected, and after checking with his wife, Sissy, he offered the young Williams space in his house. The couple became Williams’ legal guardians in 1988. Williams graduated from Banquete two years later. He joined the military after graduation and eventually opened a contracting business after returning home. His business grew, and by 2008 he had nine employees. In late 2008, Williams’ health began to fail. Doctors diagnosed him with Stage 4 renal failure. Williams would need a kidney transplant. When Rick Wallace found out about the battle his former player and surrogate son faced, he began investigating the steps to be a kidney donor. In Williams’ case, 13 turned out to be a very lucky number. Twelve others, mostly blood relatives, were tested but did not match. However, Wallace proved to be a near perfect match for Williams. Despite the risks and costs, Wallace went forward. Leading up to the transplant, he paid for his own food, hotel and travel costs as he made the monthly trip to the medical center in Austin, Texas. He also lost time at work because of the appointments and had to curtail his duties at work because of the physical toll. Wallace and Williams underwent successful transplant surgery in July 2010. Since then, Wallace has returned to work with some limitations. He gets tired more easily and has to take more breaks. Williams is still recovering but is off kidney dialysis. He told the Galveston County Daily News, “Coach had everything going for him, yet he gave it all up for me, for my life. They say there’s no price on life, but I know he’s paying one. What a gift I have. Now, it’s my turn, with a new life, to keep giving just like coach.”