Local 10 News reported Friday that the billboard’s journey to New York began when Andrew Astarita’s friends and family began raising money for his kidney transplant. Their efforts included reserving electronic billboard signs on I-95 that would air in Miami-Dade and Broward counties to spread the word.

The billboard’s message is accompanied by a photograph of Astarita and his daughter, and a link to Astarita’s website detailing his battle with Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD).

Astarita said some of his family members, including his mother, passed away due to complications with PKD.

“About 16 years ago I learned that I too have PKD. While the disease had progressed over the years, my kidney function was still okay until recently,” he wrote on the site. “My PKD has gotten worse and I will soon need dialysis and a transplant. A kidney transplant from a living donor will give me the best chance of long-term health and being able to enjoy an active life with my family and young daughter.”

The genetic disease causes cysts to grow inside the kidneys, according to the nonprofit American Kidney Fund. The cysts cause the kidney to become larger than normal and damage the organ tissue. The chronic disease can lead to kidney failure or end-stage renal disease.

Astarita said he’s currently in stage 5, kidney failure, or end-stage renal disease.

“In this last stage, kidneys function below 15 percent of their normal rate. My current kidney function is 13%,” he wrote.

After the billboards gained traction in Central Florida, they were noticed by the company TPS Engage—which allows people to book hourly slots on billboards across the country.

“We saw Andrew’s story initially when he booked the billboard on the I-95 and were inspired,” Matei Psatta, a co-founder of TPS Engage, told Newsweek in an email.

Psatta added, “Billboards are our bread and butter, we built our entire company with the mission of enabling anyone to easily broadcast their message through this channel. We’re honestly thrilled we were able to help and hope the huge word of mouth a Times Square billboard generates will help Andrew find the kidney he needs.”

The billboard is set to run in New York City from August 4th to 7th between 8 and 9 p.m. Eastern time each day.

Astarita told Newsweek that the billboard and media coverage has helped generate interest from people wanting to get tested to see if they are a possible match.

“I was blessed with the opportunity to have my message spread to Times Square. Of course, I was blown away when I saw the picture of it up on one of the biggest billboards in Times Square!” Astarita said in an email. “I’m very grateful to TPS Engage for their generosity in wanting to help me. I’m so glad to get exposure for organ donation and very hopeful that it will help me find a living donor match.”

Update (8/9/2021, 4:30 p.m. Eastern): This story has been updated to include comment from Astarita.