With this blog, I plan to chronicle my kidney donation, from when I first decided to do it, to the testing routine, through surgery, and finally the recovery process. I hope that through my first-hand experience, I can convince more people to be live kidney donors.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Today's the big day!!
Such anxiety. In a few short hours I'll be meeting my recipient. It's like Christmas and a blind date rolled into one...I'll post pictures of the whole thing later...
Reading the Daniel Akst's column about his friend the hero got me up out of my chair and composing the note to a man who has done me many kindnesses....and whose wife of 50+ years is hovering just under "20" and is "on the list" for a kidney.,..and I'm on the very beginning of the path you chose except I start out seeking to make a "directed" donation. (Chance of a match is likely small - and I'm at the edge on age - 60 - but perhaps we start a pool or "daisy chain" process.)
Further, by coincidence, I picked up an appeal for help from a fellow Daytona Beach area Realtor, about her friend's 29 year old daughter Jenny. (I'd like to email it to you - please provide me your email address if you are willing - I'm rmcgonnigal@cfl.rr.com )
My main point of writing: I've a variety of tangential experiences around "organ donor awareness". And I'm convinced that, despite the infuriating fact that there should NOT be a waiting list for at least this organ, cadaver donations are never going to pick up the slack and we need to provide facts and motivation, found in your blog and Daniel's article respectivel, that will drive up live donations.
I happen to be for a controlled, regulated PRICE for provision of funds in exchange for donation. The SPIRIT which drove you is admirable --- and rare. You are from the world of finance, perhaps you have some ideas on this.
BUT TO THE POINT: I've emailed Daniel about a subject about which I propose a conference call with you two. It involves springboarding from your experience: your motivation as described by your friend in his WSJ article and the education that you begin in your writings in this blog.
Please check in with Daniel and see if my email convinced him to have the three of us talk.
Congratulations on a wonderful "process" - from inspiration to "the close". True Grit.
My name is Anthony DeGiulio. I'm 37 and live in upstate New York with my weimaraner, Frankie. One of my dreams is to save someone's life. Since I don't think I will ever pull anyone from a burning building or perform CPR on a stranger, I figured donating a kidney might be the closest I would come. This is the story of my experience.
3 comments:
looking forward to an update.
Anthony:
Reading the Daniel Akst's column about his friend the hero got me up out of my chair and composing the note to a man who has done me many kindnesses....and whose wife of 50+ years is hovering just under "20" and is "on the list" for a kidney.,..and I'm on the very beginning of the path you chose except I start out seeking to make a "directed" donation. (Chance of a match is likely small - and I'm at the edge on age - 60 - but perhaps we start a pool or "daisy chain" process.)
Further, by coincidence, I picked up an appeal for help from a fellow Daytona Beach area Realtor, about her friend's 29 year old daughter Jenny. (I'd like to email it to you - please provide me your email address if you are willing - I'm rmcgonnigal@cfl.rr.com )
My main point of writing: I've a variety of tangential experiences around "organ donor awareness". And I'm convinced that, despite the infuriating fact that there should NOT be a waiting list for at least this organ, cadaver donations are never going to pick up the slack and we need to provide facts and motivation, found in your blog and Daniel's article respectivel, that will drive up live donations.
I happen to be for a controlled, regulated PRICE for provision of funds in exchange for donation. The SPIRIT which drove you is admirable --- and rare. You are from the world of finance, perhaps you have some ideas on this.
BUT TO THE POINT: I've emailed Daniel about a subject about which I propose a conference call with you two. It involves springboarding from your experience: your motivation as described by your friend in his WSJ article and the education that you begin in your writings in this blog.
Please check in with Daniel and see if my email convinced him to have the three of us talk.
Congratulations on a wonderful "process" - from inspiration to "the close". True Grit.
RM
Ormond Beach, FL
OK - we're hanging, out here!! How did it go?????
:-)
PS - Please check in with Mr. Akst...he may fill you in on an email exchange we've had.
Thanks
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