Today We Celebrate Life!

A year ago today my daughter Valerie donated a kidney to my sister Martha. A few of us our getting together to share a meal and appreciate the love and fierce loyalty we have for one another. The Lord has blessed us beyond measure.

Photo: Martha and 3 of her 4 kidney donors (our sister Mary passed away last year). Martha at the forefront, our brother Burt (the hairy dude), my daughter Valerie and our brother John. Each of Martha’s 4 kidney transplants in her 60-years of life have been considered successful. Contrary to popular belief, transplanted organs can last anywhere from a few months to 20 or 30 years.

Please consider organ donation, the ultimate gift of life.

 Valerie, kidney donor, and Martha, October 14, 2011, 7:40 p.m.,
just a day after kidney transplant

Valerie Is Home!

I can't believe it, but after only 3 days, Valerie was released from UC San Francisco hospital and is back at home. She is sore but happy to have the transplant over with, as are we all.

Larry (Marty's hubby, a true unsung hero) and I don't know what we would have done had we not had Dawn (Valerie's identical twin) and Leslie (Martha & Larry's daughter) by our side. Their doting and patience did not go unnoticed. The four of us together made a pretty darned good tag-team, keeping one another grounded and held together emotionally.

My hubby couldn't do the trip because he is recovering from his 4th back surgery. It was a difficult time for him not to be able to be with us, and it was just as difficult not having him to lean on, but we muddled through. Having him home, though, gave us all peace of mind that our four dogs were being spoiled, the mail taken in and the house safe.

Martha is still at UCSF, but she is doing pretty well. She still has a way to go in getting herself back up to par to where she was a couple of years ago. She is so grateful to Valerie for her new kidney and keeps saying thank you to everyone she sees. It is wonderful to see Martha's color return and the light back in her eyes.

We'll be going back to San Francisco Thursday morning for Valerie's follow-up. The view from the 7th floor of the kidney unit is breathtaking, so we will concentrate on that positive to make the drive up there more pleasant to anticipate.

Giving thanks to the Lord for putting in our grasp some of the best transplant surgeons in the world and top-notch nurses and staff. Our God is an awesome God!

This is me (the gal w/glasses) standing next to my brother John who gave my sister a kidney many years ago, and my sister Martha who is awaiting another transplant. My daughter Valerie has completed testing to be a donor, and a tentative date has been set for late October at the University of California, San Francisco.

In the meantime, my daughter is having a procedure next week which requires a 3-month healing period by UCSF before they will set the transplant date in stone.

As both a sister and a mother of these fabulous women, my emotions are all over the place. If you are a believer, we sure would appreciate it if you would keep our families in your prayers.

A PLEA FOR HELP

A PLEA FOR HELP

This is me with my sister and best friend Martha (she’s the one with the short hair). She has had 3 successful kidney transplants throughout her 59 years, all donated by siblings (2 brothers and sister). She is in need of another transplant and there are two possible donors that have been waiting in the wings SINCE OCTOBER 2010, one is our brother, the other my daughter.

We believe Marty is also on the cadaver list, but we can’t be sure because clear, concise information has been so difficult to obtain from the University of California at San Fransisco (UCSF).
Marty is very ill and on the cusp of going back on kidney dialysis, but she doesn’t do well on it, so I don’t know how long she can keep on keepin’ on.

Does anyone out there in Tumblr-land have any contacts at UCSF, anyone we could discuss her case with? Brick walls are what we have been hitting, we can’t even get vials sent to Martha to be tested for antigens, a very basic step in the transplant process. (Actually, Marty did send UCSF vials back in October, but since they have dragged their feet, they are no longer viable. They have yet to send more.)

Martha has great insurance. She is able to maintain the medications required after transplantation and has always paid her medical bills. But we are discovering that the finance department at UCSF is telling her she needs $30,000 upfront before they will even talk about a transplant, let alone begin testing. Her insurance gave her a $2,000 deductible quote, which we can take care of, but we don’t understand where the $30,000 number is coming from.

Marty was also told that if the possible donors do not match, then their insurance is required to pay for all testing that was done. That’s a new one on us and a sure killer to the donor program if I ever heard one. We are hoping that we have been misinformed and that someone will step up and correct it.

Going through 3 transplants you learn the ropes, but it looks like the rules have now changed. We are appalled that this financial requirement, if it is indeed required, will ultimately take Martha’s life. If you can help in any way by providing contact information with someone who is willing to listen to our plea for help, please let me know as soon as possible. Every day that passes means a tougher time for Marty.