A Son's Christmas Gift To His Ailing Father: A Kidney

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Did you give your parents anything memorable for the holidays this year?

Leonard Miller III didn't give his dad a sweater or set golf clubs for Christmas. The Chicago man gave his father the gift of life, CBS 2's Suzanne Le Mignot reports.

Leonard Miller II says he has his son to thank for his new-found well-being. The junior Miller donated one of his kidneys to his father this past Christmas.

"A lot of people, they give gifts, things that have to do with fashion, the latest toys, electronics, things like that," the son says. "But how many people can actually give their dad a kidney for Christmas, or give them something that they're actually going to have inside them for the next 15, 20 or 30 years."

The younger Miller underwent the surgery to save his father's life on Dec. 12. His father had been suffering from renal failure for the past three years.

"The toxins were building up in my system. My body wasn't able to process them and get them out," he says.

Miller II is now looking forward to a long life ahead with his family, his wife of 32 years, Jacqueline; their granddaughter Janeya, and their four other adult children.

"I want him to be around when I start having kids, so he can meet Leonard Miller the fourth," the younger Miller says.

The elder Miller says the life-saving transplant made possible by his son was not just an early Christmas gift but a birthday present, too. He'll be celebrating his 60th birthday on Saturday.