Hey, my name’s Troy Cuellar, and I’m a 59-year-old guy from the south side of Chicago. I’m not one to ask for help, but life’s thrown me a curveball, and now I’ve got to reach out.

I’ve been fighting kidney disease for a while now, and it’s gotten to the point where I’m on dialysis. They call it CCPD (Continuous Cycling Peritoneal Dialysis). It’s keeping me alive, but it’s no way to live. What I really need is a kidney transplant, and I can’t do this on my own.

I love riding my motorcycle, hanging with my friends, and smoking cigars—simple things that make life sweet. But lately, I’ve been too tired or tied up with treatments to really enjoy the things I love. That’s hard, man. Really hard.

The thing about getting a kidney transplant is, even if I can find a donor, it costs a ton of money. The surgery, the hospital stays, the medicines to keep my body from rejecting the kidney—it all adds up. They say the meds alone can cost thousands every year. I’m trying to raise $12,000 to help cover some of these costs and give myself a fighting chance to get back to living my life.

This isn’t easy to write because I’m not used to asking for handouts, but I can’t do this alone. If you can help, whether it’s a few bucks or just sharing my story, I’d be forever grateful. I just want to get back to riding, laughing with my friends, and enjoying a good cigar now and then.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. I appreciate it more than you know.

With hope,

Troy

P.S. If you know anyone who’s interested in learning more about being a kidney donor, please let me know. That could be the biggest blessing of all.