Beloved  Family and Friends, I created this fundraiser on behalf of my daughter Kiera. She went into kidney failure two  years ago while working in Italy.  Since then our lives have been turned upside down; the heart ache has been devastating and grief has engulfed me for the past two years.  Hope has found us in the possibility of a transplant. 

I found out that I was a match for her last year and embarked on the journey to be approved as a living donor.  Covid slowed the process down, but we have a surgical date and we are going forward with the surgery at the end of this month, March 2021.  Below is her story.  Thank you all for your prayers, kind words, and the love you have shown us.  May God prosper you in all you do. <3 


Hello, My name is Kiera Symmes. I'm 22 years old and I live in Boone, North Carolina.  Two years ago I was diagnosed with end stage renal disease, aka kidney failure. When I first  got sick I spent a month in the hospital before the doctors found out what was wrong. This was definitely one of the hardest times in my life. After a month I was released from the hospital and back home, but nothing about my life was the same. 


Your kidneys control your blood pressure, and mine aren’t working so I have to take six different medications to control my blood pressure.  I also have to take medication anytime I eat or drank anything, because your kidneys also regulate the minerals in your blood and too much of certain minerals can affect your health.  The biggest change in my life is having to go do dialysis three days a week for several hours each day. This drains my energy, makes me feel weak and tired everyday.   I remember feeling like I was having a horrible nightmare and I would wake up any minute. But this is my new reality and I am wide awake!


 I started my first semester of college three months after coming home from the hospital. This helped me to feel normal and productive and gave me something to focus on while dealing with the hardship of my health condition. After two years I’ve come a long way, my body has adjusted to the stress of dialysis and I have adapted to my life as it is now. However, long term on dialysis is not recommended and quality of life diminishes with time. Dialysis isn’t as effective as your kidneys in filtering your blood and eventually it takes its toll on the body. People on long term dialysis live shorter lives and more illness. Thankfully modern medicine has found another treatment plan for kidney disease! Kidney transplant! 


In the summer of 2020, just a little over a year after I was diagnosed with end stage renal failure, I was in dialysis and my mother called me. She told me she had secretly been going to a Baptist hospital to get testing done in order to see if she was a match, and indeed she was! My mother told me that if the doctors approved her, then she was going to give me her kidney.  I remember trying to hold back my tears which seemed to be impossible, the thought of being free from dialysis was something I had only known in my past life! At that moment it felt possible. 


The doctors cleared my mom to be a living donor and we plan to have our surgery at the end of March. Kidney transplant is a life changing surgery that will set a new course for my life.  After the procedure, my mother and I will both need time to recover. Even after transplant, I will be in and out of the hospital for at least two years, and for the life of my kidney I will be on immunosuppressants.  The medication is very expensive, thousands of dollars every month. After the procedure I will require help in so many aspects of my life.  My mother has always said that it takes a village and though I feel vulnerable reaching out to people for help, I realize I cannot do this alone: I need the support and care of family, friends, my community, anyone willing and able to help.


So I share my story in hopes that people will see it and reach out a hand. I ask that you please share, donate, or just send positive energy and prayers my direction. I know that in the coming months I will need these things more than ever before. I also ask if you would prefer, to donate to my kidney association fund which will help pay for medications in the years to come. This is something I highly request, because after two years I will be taken off of medicaid and medicare and will have to find a way to pay for medication that will cost upwards of a thousand dollars a month. So if you’re willing and able please help however you can. Thank you!