She put up signs saying she needs a kidney donation — but her HOA wants the ads down

Gabi Morales, 23, needs a new kidney — so she put magnetic signs on her car hoping to find a potential donor.

“23-year-old needs living kidney donor! Give the gift of life! Facebook: Find a Kidney For Gabriele ‘Gabi,” the sign reads.

For Gabi, the search for a kidney hasn’t been easy; she’s on a donor list with three hospitals, and in the meantime spends 10 hours a day hooked up to a dialysis machine, according to WFLA.

To make things more challenging, only a small portion of the population can successfully donate a kidney to her, she said to ABC Action News.

"I'm only a match to technically one percent of the world so it's a little bit harder for me to find a match,” she said.

But Gabi’s search got a bit more complicated when her homeowner’s association warned her to take down the magnetic signs — saying they make her car a “commercial vehicle,” according to WFLA.

And if they don’t? Gabi said she could face a fine of $100 per violation from the HOA, according to WFLA.

Gabi’s mother, Tammi, seemed incredulous at the news.

"'Are you freaking kidding me?!' I think is what I actually said,” Tammi said to ABC Action News.

Gabi was born with one kidney that was just 10 percent developed, and another that was not developed at all. She said she received a kidney transplant from her father when she was turning five — and that the kidney lasted 18 years.

With all that hardship, Gabi said she doesn’t understand the HOA’s motives.

“It’s a community, you’re supposed to help each other, not tear each other down,” she said to WFLA.

“And I know there are rules and we have to follow the rules,” her mother added, “but if this doesn’t constitute as a reason to break a rule, tell me what does.”

ABC Action News took a stroll around Gabi’s Glen Oaks neighborhood, asking community members what they thought about the issue.

According to ABC Action News, most neighbors, including Rohan Bangera, think Gabi shouldn’t have to take her sign down.

"It's actually really bad that people are actually complaining. They should just let it go,” Bangera, a resident in the neighborhood, said.

Gabi and her mom aren’t backing down: The family has a lawyer and said they don’t have any plans to take the signs down.

So, what will it take for Gabi to remove the magnetic advertisements?

“As soon as I get my kidney,” Gabi said, “I can take this off.”

This story was originally published September 1, 2017 at 11:22 AM with the headline "She put up signs saying she needs a kidney donation — but her HOA wants the ads down."