A message from Kathy Walen a star employee at the Reynolds School of Journalism about her husband Kevin well know in the community as an actor, recently appearing in A Facility for Living with Reno Little Theater who is in urgent need of a kidney:
“Hi friends, for those of you that don’t know, Kevin has polycystic kidney disease (PKD), a genetic disease that causes cysts to grow on his kidneys and liver, and he now requires a kidney transplant.
After multiple trips to Salt Lake City and extensive testing, Kevin has been accepted into the kidney transplant center at Intermountain Medical Center in Salt Lake City. Aside from PKD, Kevin is in perfect health, no other health issues or diseases. He is a perfect candidate.
This is where we need your help.
They tell us to share our story in the hopes of finding a living donor (and this is a very hard thing for me to do). They also tell us that most living donors come from a friend of a friend that reads our story. Living donors don’t even have to be a match- they can be Kevin’s “buddy donor,” and when someone else in the country also has a “buddy donor” that matches Kevin, the buddies each donate one kidney and two people get a transplant that day. Our insurance covers all costs for someone that chooses to donate a kidney to Kevin. Unfortunately, our daughters carry the gene and are unable to be potential donors.
If we are able to find a living donor, Kevin will be able to avoid dialysis, which complicates things. If we wait for a deceased donor, the waitlist time is approximately 2-3 years, which means dialysis. I have no doubt whatsoever and I have great faith that Kevin is going to be okay.
The road ahead will be hard. Kevin has stayed alive through many dangerous situations in his 26 year military career, but nothing prepares you for this, even if you have spent years knowing that this could potentially be on the horizon. BUT, we remain positive, Kevin takes excellent care of his physical and mental health, and we are hopeful.
If you feel comfortable, please share our story in the hopes that someone in the country sees it and feels called to donate life.
If you have any questions at all, please contact Kevin or I privately. I have attached a card from the kidney transplant center at Intermountain Medical Center and people can contact them directly. Thank you friends, be kind to one another and love hard. - K”
Our Town Reno, Citizen’s Forum Contrubition by Kathy Walen