Today, Andrew Banacki has no problem stating that he is an out, proud, gay man. It wasn't always so easy.
"It took a long time for me to understand," he said. "Because really my high school, middle school, growing up (in a) conservative area, I didn't really know any other members of the gay community."
His family faced the same challenge.
"It wasn't the happiest time. But we made it through, and they're more than accepting now."
They would be tested again three years ago when his father went into kidney failure.
"As soon as they told him he had to be on dialysis, they said, 'You're going to need a transplant. You're either going to be on dialysis the rest of your life, or you have to get a kidney transplant.'"
Other family members were tested to see if they could donate but weren't matches. Andrew was.
"My parents have done a lot for me, growing up as a kid. I gave them a lot of trouble," he said, laughing. "So this was the smallest thing I could do for them. It was an easy decision for me."
Two years ago, Andrew donated his kidney to his father. He says his sexuality never came up during the process, something that surprised his friends.
"People were very surprised. They told me, 'Well if they ask you in the interview process, you have to answer the truth.' Some people said, 'No, don't answer the truth. This is your dad.'"
Kent Holloway is the CEO of Lifeline of Ohio.
"I think in the gay community there's a huge misconception that - say I'm a gay male - I can't give blood, so nobody's going to take my organs. So why am I going to register? I can't do anything. And it couldn't be farther from the truth."
Holloway says the process of finding a suitable organ donor is focused on health, not sexuality.
"We do extensive testing. We can be very, very confident about what's going on in an individual's body at the time of donation."
Lifeline has partnered with Andrew to share his story and shatter the myth about gay organ donation.
This weekend, they'll literally carry that message in the Columbus Pride Parade.
"Your gift is as good as anyone's gift."
And who you love doesn't impact your ability to save a life. More than 117,000 people are now on the national waiting list for an organ transplant.
In Ohio, there are more than 2900 people waiting. You can register to be an organ donor: lifelineofohio.org.