Our son Jonathan was diagnosed with Lupus Nephritis in December 2008 at the age of 16 yrs resulting in end stage renal failure. Jonathan spent 6 weeks in Salford Royal (Hope) Hospital, Salford under the expert care of the Renal Team, resulting in daily peritoneal dialysis.
We have had a very testing time since then as a family, especially when we were told that a kidney transplant was the only option for him to lead a life without dialysis and illness.
As his family we were all eager to be tested in relation to live donation, fortunately both Carole and I were a good blood/tissue match for Jonathan. Our eldest son Chris who is 20 was also keen to be tested but due to Jonathans age and the fact that he may require a further transplant in the future we made the decision to keep him in the sidelines for a subsequent transplant.
After a family discussion, a decision was made that as his father I wanted the opportunity to take the next step and put myself forward for the donation process. After nearly 12 months of anticipation and tests, we now have a date for the operation which will be carried out at Manchester Royal Infirmary in early March 2010.
As a family we didn’t know much, if anything about kidney disease and it’s only when it happens to you or a close family member do you realise how devastating it can be to the sufferer or the people around them who have to live with the day to day effects.
Chris has been a tower of strength to his brother and ourselves and as a result of his own experience, decided he would like to raise awareness and promote the work of the National Kidney Federation. He, together with his girlfriend Zoe arranged a dress down day at their place of work, the enclosed cheque for £194 is a result of their efforts.
I am a serving Police Officer with Greater Manchester Police working on the Trafford Division. Each year the division chooses a charity and any monies raised throughout that year are then donated to the said charity. I proposed the NKF and with lots of support from my colleagues it was successfully nominated ahead of several other local and national charities. Fund raising events will take place throughout the year and we can only hope that the monies raised will play a small part in helping and supporting this much needed federation along with its patients, families and carers.
Our wish is that at the end of the coming year our son Jonathan will be well on the road to recovery and that the NKF will be a little better off due to the efforts of GMP’s Trafford division.
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
So please dig deep and donate now.
