I’ve started this fundraiser for my son, Blake, who is 12 years old. He was diagnosed at birth with chronic renal (kidney) failure and nearly started dialysis at 10 days old. Fortunately, his kidneys began to heal on their own and he has been able to avoid dialysis for 12 years now.  During this time, he has also been diagnosed with a seizure disorder, autism, and failure to thrive (he’s completely fed by a g-tube). All of these things are the result of a brain injury Blake received during his traumatic birth. He was an identical twin but we lost his brother during their birth. Miraculously, Blake’s life was spared but not without this list of ailments.

Blake has fought long and hard during the past 12 years, attending multiple hours of therapies each week as well as numerous doctors appointments with his team of specialists.  He has overcome so much!

We learned in July of this year that his kidneys just couldn’t keep up with his growth anymore. Not only were they failing further but they are actually shrinking in size.  They are smaller than an infant’s kidneys and cannot sustain his body size.  He was listed in October on the national kidney registry in hopes of receiving a deceased donor’s kidney. In addition, we have 2 people (my husband and a local woman) who are going through living donor testing.  We are hopeful that one of them will pass all testing to be able to give Blake a healthy kidney.  What a gift!

With all of that being said, I have to mention what a financial burden transplants can cause.  This surgery is very costly, even with good insurance. Along with the surgery itself, we are also facing costs of life long anti rejection medications, loss of income during our time away from work (Blake is expected to miss 3-6 months of school), copays for so many follow up visits with the transplant clinic, non-medical costs his donor may face as well as their loss of income too. These are just to name a few.  We have been encouraged by the Transplant Team at Augusta University to fundraise as much as possible to help offset some of these costs. There are so many ways to help! In this season of giving, would you consider donating to my son?

Please follow “Blake’s Kidney Journey” on Facebook for more fundraising information and to read more about his story.

Thank you for your time!

Lindsay Washington