Support Jessica in being a Blessing
Donation protected
For those of you who don't know me, my name is Jessica. I am a Daughter, a Sister, a Niece, a Friend, an Aunt, a God Mama, a Dog Mama, an active volunteer with Big Brothers Big Sister/The Four Seven/Crossroads Church, & most importantly a Child of God! I will soon add another title to that lovely list as a Living Organ Donor.
In March 2020 I will be having a major surgery, not for a procedure to save my life, or the life of a family member, but a stranger's life, well kind of a stranger. This man shares mutual friends with me as well as our college Alma Mater- University of Cincinnati (GO BEARCATS), and I learned his story through social media. One day in early 2019 I was scrolling through Instagram and a post, by not 1 but 2 friends, stood out to me. The post was expressing the need for this man to have a kidney transplant, with contact info if anyone was interested in being tested to see if they would be a match. I initially prayed for this man, that someone would be found as a match for him. A few days went by and I saw another post again expressing the need for this kidney transplant. That day I felt the feeling I get when I feel like I am supposed to do something, so I called to get more information. After some blood work was completed, it was determined that I was a match, along with multiple other people. So when this occurred, they looked at the matches and determined who the best match was. There were a couple others who were initially a better match so donation was put on the back burner for me.
Fast forward to July 2019 - when I returned from vacation I had a voicemail from the Transplant coordinator. The message was to inform me that the other candidates had either been disqualified or chose not to move forward, so if I was still interested to please call her. I prayed about it that night and felt confident that moving forward with donation was the direction I was supposed to move in. After about a month more of testing, I was officially approved as a donor and committed to donating my Right kidney. Due to my busy schedule and starting a new job, donation was postponed until March 2020.
A little bit about the man I am donating to. Like you and me he has a family and community of friends that he loves and cherishes. Unfortunately, he has faced a life long battle with kidney disease and a transplant is the only way to extend his life. It's the only way that he will live to get married, possibly have children and watch them grow up, and the only way that he will continue to impact the lives around him.
This is where I come in. After a year of testing, meetings, and conversations we are nearing the end game. I will be donating my right kidney to this man and God willing it will extend his life at least another 15-20 years. The only challenge for me is a financial one. Thankfully his health insurance has covered all my testing and will cover up to my post-operation visit at 14 days. Other than that there is no financial support for a living donor. I will be out of work for approximately six weeks. I will have a couple weeks of PTO I will be able to use, but outside of that I am trusting that God will provide.
I thank God every day that I wake up, for good health as well as all of the other blessings he continues to send my way. I live my life hoping to be the best reflection of Jesus that I can be. I am not perfect, I fall short every day, but any way I can be a blessing to someone in need I try to be.
Whether with prayers or by financial support for my upcoming adventure, any contribution you can make is greatly appreciated. I also encourage you to learn more about being a living donor. At any given time there are over 100,000 people on the national transplant waiting list. Visit https://www.donatelife.net/ or https://www.kidney.org/ for more information.
Each day we are blessed with is such a gift, make sure you cherish & make the most of yours.
Love & Blessings!
-Jessica
In March 2020 I will be having a major surgery, not for a procedure to save my life, or the life of a family member, but a stranger's life, well kind of a stranger. This man shares mutual friends with me as well as our college Alma Mater- University of Cincinnati (GO BEARCATS), and I learned his story through social media. One day in early 2019 I was scrolling through Instagram and a post, by not 1 but 2 friends, stood out to me. The post was expressing the need for this man to have a kidney transplant, with contact info if anyone was interested in being tested to see if they would be a match. I initially prayed for this man, that someone would be found as a match for him. A few days went by and I saw another post again expressing the need for this kidney transplant. That day I felt the feeling I get when I feel like I am supposed to do something, so I called to get more information. After some blood work was completed, it was determined that I was a match, along with multiple other people. So when this occurred, they looked at the matches and determined who the best match was. There were a couple others who were initially a better match so donation was put on the back burner for me.
Fast forward to July 2019 - when I returned from vacation I had a voicemail from the Transplant coordinator. The message was to inform me that the other candidates had either been disqualified or chose not to move forward, so if I was still interested to please call her. I prayed about it that night and felt confident that moving forward with donation was the direction I was supposed to move in. After about a month more of testing, I was officially approved as a donor and committed to donating my Right kidney. Due to my busy schedule and starting a new job, donation was postponed until March 2020.
A little bit about the man I am donating to. Like you and me he has a family and community of friends that he loves and cherishes. Unfortunately, he has faced a life long battle with kidney disease and a transplant is the only way to extend his life. It's the only way that he will live to get married, possibly have children and watch them grow up, and the only way that he will continue to impact the lives around him.
This is where I come in. After a year of testing, meetings, and conversations we are nearing the end game. I will be donating my right kidney to this man and God willing it will extend his life at least another 15-20 years. The only challenge for me is a financial one. Thankfully his health insurance has covered all my testing and will cover up to my post-operation visit at 14 days. Other than that there is no financial support for a living donor. I will be out of work for approximately six weeks. I will have a couple weeks of PTO I will be able to use, but outside of that I am trusting that God will provide.
I thank God every day that I wake up, for good health as well as all of the other blessings he continues to send my way. I live my life hoping to be the best reflection of Jesus that I can be. I am not perfect, I fall short every day, but any way I can be a blessing to someone in need I try to be.
Whether with prayers or by financial support for my upcoming adventure, any contribution you can make is greatly appreciated. I also encourage you to learn more about being a living donor. At any given time there are over 100,000 people on the national transplant waiting list. Visit https://www.donatelife.net/ or https://www.kidney.org/ for more information.
Each day we are blessed with is such a gift, make sure you cherish & make the most of yours.
Love & Blessings!
-Jessica
Organizer
Jessica Mount
Organizer
Cincinnati, OH