A New Kind of Volunteering: Be A Donor!

During these last few weeks I have thought about life as a wonderful gift.  None of us know where this journey of life will lead us.  We need to embrace each and every day as the blessing God gives us.  I have met so many people during this journey with Ken and through their eyes have seen the strength and courage to accept what the Lord has planned for us.  I was inspired by this article written by a kidney donor and wanted to share it with all of you.  What an amazing outlook on life he has and what an inspiration to others he is.  

May God bless all of us on this journey called life and until next time may the Lord carry us on our journey,

Pat

No Time to Volunteer? Just Donate a Kidney!

By Jim Sollisch, NKF Guest Blogger

Since I donated a kidney to a friend almost 4 months ago, I’ve had a lot of conversations that go like this:
Nice person: “That’s a big deal. I’m not sure I could do something like that.”
Me: “Sure you could.”
Nice person: It seems so extreme.
Me: Do you do any volunteer work?
Nice person: I volunteer at a soup kitchen every Thursday night.
Me: That’s a big deal. I couldn’t do something like that.

I’m not kidding either. For me, donating a kidney to a friend was easier and more rewarding than regularly volunteering or being on a non-profit board. Volunteering week after week bores me. And I tend to be very selfish with my time. Same with being on non-profit boards. I’ve been on several, and all it takes is one good long board meeting about finances, and I’m ready to trade places with a guy confined to solitary in a penitentiary in the deep South without air conditioning.

So what’s my point? Two points really. First, there’s not a hierarchy of good deeds with organ donation on the top. To me, the real heroes are out there feeding the hungry week after week. And second, if you’re anything like me— impatient, action-oriented, competitive– donating a kidney is a perfect opportunity to do something positive without having to sit through boring meetings or face the same task week after week. It’s an event, not a commitment. I approached it as if I were training for a race. For six weeks leading up to the surgery, I worked out harder, ate better and got down close to what I weighed in college. I started to appreciate my good health in a way I never had before. My friend’s struggle with kidney disease made me feel incredibly lucky to be so healthy. It seemed so natural to give her some of what I had. Not a big deal at all.

I couldn’t wait for the surgery day to arrive. I looked at the recovery as a physical test. I wanted to recover faster than any other donor. Again it was like getting through a series of grueling workouts. But when you’re in training, the people in your life aren’t really cheering for you. In this case, people couldn’t have been nicer. And that made it even easier.

I was back at work in ten days. And after the mandatory six-week recovery period, I was back to playing basketball and working out. I was completely back to myself—except for one lingering side-effect: an incredible sense of happiness and well-being. I actually felt like I had accomplished something real and tangible. And that’s a feeling I’ve rarely gotten from other acts of giving.

Mr. Sollisch is senior vice president/creative director at Marcus Thomas LLC, an ad agency in Cleveland, Ohio. He donated a kidney to his colleague, Joanne Kim, earlier this year.

A Sister's Words of Wisdom and Faith

Ken and Roxanne Dancing At Greg's Wedding in 2011

Greetings to all who have followed along on this journey!  Some of you are heavily invested emotionally and others considerably less so.  Irrespective of your motivation or involvement, I believe this is ultimately a story of God’s love and faithfulness towards us, whom He has created.

As Ken’s sister, I watched this whole process develop somewhat remotely.  I was first told of his diagnosis years ago by our mom.  Most of his early trials and treatments were relayed to me by her as well.  I never thought much that there would be a time in the future when his disease could progress to the point of requiring a kidney transplant. Two years ago, at my son Jonathan’s wedding this became more real to me.  Even then, it still seemed to be a distant and future possibility.  But, life raced forward and by the end of 2010, it became a reality.

Upon finding out that he would indeed require a kidney transplant, my immediate reaction was that he could surely have one of mine.  Alan (my husband and a MD) explained to me that a match with a sibling was more probable than that with his offspring, as siblings are more likely to share similar genetic material.  I felt that I would be the one to match; and, I was totally at peace with that possibility.  I mentally prepared for a summer “kidney sharing” event since my schedule and obligations are eased somewhat then.  When I as well as my other siblings and his children were disqualified because of blood type incompatibilities, I was stunned; however, the God of heaven and earth most definitely was not.

The last 18 months or so have been an emotional and physical roller coaster ride for Ken, Pat, and their loved ones.  When the initial testing of Alex and others proved to be unfruitful, it seemed as if this might be a long and arduous journey indeed.  I enlisted friends and acquaintances to place Ken on their prayer lists.  Those prayers were answered when it was determined after repeat testing Alex was a great match and he unselfishly agreed to become a donor.  That got me to thinking…what are the chances that someone from Greenville, SC who is some 30 years younger would be a perfect kidney donor match for someone in New Orleans, LA?  And then, that very person would have been woven into the life of the one needing his precious kidney?  Amazing that Kelly would just so happen want to attend college at Clemson (don’t most kids from Louisiana want to party at LSU or at least somewhere closer than South Carolina??), and she would meet, date, move away from, reconnect with, and ultimately marry Mr. Perfect Tissue Match for her dad.  Or is it?  Some may think this is just a great coincidence.  To me, I see the fingerprints of God ALL over this.  Only He can orchestrate such a grand symphony.  

I have been doing a Beth Moore bible study of Daniel this summer.  When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are thrown into the fiery furnace, Beth points out that there are 3 possible outcomes for each and every one of us when we are subjected to the fiery furnaces of this life.  God can deliver us from the fire completely which builds our faith.  He can deliver us through the fire which refines our faith.  Or, He can deliver us by the fire into His arms.  Ken seems to have been delivered through the fiery furnace and I pray that he, as was the case with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, will have “no smell of fire on him” (Daniel 3:28) and his faith and that of all who read this will be strengthened and refined.

To God be the glory!

Roxanne

Come Walk With The Renal Roigs!

In November 2011 our family participated in the Kidney Walk at Audubon Park in uptown New Orleans.  Family and friends joined us on that day.  At that point in our journey for a kidney for Ken we were happy that dialysis was working for Ken.  He was on it for about 8 to 9 hours a night.  He was working full time, playing golf on the weekend and enjoying life.  Alex, our son-in-law, had begun the testing process to see if he was a match.  We walked, laughed, ate and danced that day together with our family and friends.  We were the “Renal Roigs” and we were committed to finding that kidney for Ken. I've shared some pictures below of that wonderful day.

This November we are planning to take part in the Kidney Walk in Audubon Park again. What a difference a year makes!  Ken is on dialysis for 10 – 11 hours a night.  He still works full time and plays golf but our life is totally controlled by the dialysis treatments but I am not complaining.  This is a life saving treatment.  We are committed to keeping Ken healthy and we are looking at that “beautiful light at the end of the tunnel” – a new kidney donated by Alex.  This Kidney Walk we will be focusing on celebrating Alex, our hero and donor, and all donors out there.  We hope to encourage others to consider donating this precious gift of life for someone else.  We are amazed and humbled by all the people who are following our blog.  We would like to ask all of you to consider joining us this November 4th and be part of our team.  You are all part of our family already so come be a part of Team Renal Roig.  We would love to have you all.  If you are out of town and considering a trip to New Orleans, November is a beautiful month in our city.  We can give you ideas for lodging, dining out and other fun things to do.

If you are interested in joining us, please contact me at akidneyforken@gmail.com  I will give you more details on the walk and how to register with our team. 

Until next time may the Lord carry us on our journey,

Pat

Team Renal Roig

Addie and Stef

Mary and Camille with Jim and Ken in background

Team Dredge

Alex and Jillie

Danny dancing with Sophie

Ken's sister, Sheila, dancing and entertaining

Addie and Sophie swinging

My dear friend Roberta

Alex and Kelly

"Paying It Forward"

Last week I was hoping to announce the date of Ken’s transplant surgery. So many of you have asked and we were expecting to have a firm date to share as part of the blog last week. Instead, the scheduling has continued to be in flux so I decided to push the blog out a week hoping to announce a date today. Although we do not have a final confirmation, the date will likely be Monday, September 10^th. We are all saying prayers and keeping fingers crossed that the surgeon will be available on that day.

When Greg and Camille suggested I start this blog a few months ago, I never really envisioned what it would become. In the process of finding a kidney for Ken, people have reached out to us sharing their most personal stories. This is a responsibility I don’t take lightly. I am humbled that friends and strangers have opened their hearts to me, and I want to be a voice for those searching for the same outcome that we have been blessed with – finding that one selfless person willing to give the ultimate gift of life to another human being.  So with that, I would like to share one of these stories with you about a dear friend.

Almost fifteen years ago a soon to be mom for the first time had some routine tests done. Results showed blood and protein in her urine. Her doctor thought this could have been a result of the pregnancy and wanted to test her again 6 months later. She learned she had a kidney disease.  It was shocking to her.  She did not feel bad and had no symptoms.  She decided to take charge of her life by making some lifestyle changes like eating a low sodium diet and making exercise a daily part of her routine. She did have to take medications for her blood pressure but she continued to lead a normal life.  She was blessed with two more healthy girls and life was good.  As the girls grew she was busy as all moms are with activities at school and after school.  Her family moved and the girls changed schools all within a short time frame.   During this transition time my friend started forgetting about taking care of herself.  She often skipped medications and did not keep up with routine doctor appointments.  She finally made an appointment to have a regular checkup.  Her doctor ran routine tests and the results were not good.  She was notified that she had to go back to her kidney doctor immediately.  The disease had progressed.  She went from her normal routine for the past 15 years to talking about kidney transplantation.  How could this be happening to her she wondered?  It was a whirlwind the next few weeks as she was thrust into appointments with doctors talking about surgery and testing for possible donors.  She had not shared this information with anyone except her husband.  Now she had to let her family know.  This was probably the hardest thing for her. She is struggling with the enormity of this situation.  She has so many feelings that Ken and I have experienced on our journey.  It is so difficult to talk about this disease with friends.  You want them to know but you don’t want them to “feel sorry for you.”  We walked that path and realized that we needed the prayers.  We needed people to know so our story could reach others and maybe the “greatest gift” would be found. 

Today I am asking you for prayers for my friend and her family. In her own time she will be able to share her story. I feel blessed that she allowed me to share this much on our blog. Her blood type is A. If you or someone you know would be interested in becoming a possible kidney donor for her, please send me an email and I will pass on the information. You can reach me at akidneyforken@gmail.com. We as a family will continue to be advocates for people searching for organ donors and pledge to do everything in our power to “pay it forward.” As always, thank you for reading and supporting our cause.

Until next time, may the Lord carry us on our journey,

Pat