Giving the Gift of Life
I had the pleasure of hearing a wonderful story of hope and faith told in the shadow of fear this afternoon. A friend of this congregation brought to my attention the story of a Lexington boy by the name of Braxton Upthegrove who awaits a kidney transplant.
Braxton's mother is a co-worker of this individual and she was so moved by his faith testimony she felt compelled to try to spread the word of his need and his faith. Braxton is a 15 year old high-school freshman who loves UK basketball and wants to be just like any other boy. What sets him apart from others his age is his desperate health situation. Braxton need is dire. He currently undergoes nightly dialysis treatments at home while he sleeps (a 10 hour process!). Dialysis is becoming more difficult as he has "limited venous access" due to his past medical history of frequent IV lines. The letter shared with us from his Nephrologist, Dr. Stefan G. Kiessling, Associate Professor, Chief, Division of Pediatric Nephrology at UK Children's Hospital states, "This is very concerning to us since without dialysis or kidney transplant, Braxton will die."
Braxton's mother, Michelle, shared with her co-workers Braxton's latest bout with illness. He received angioplasty surgery at Cincinnati Children's Hospital in early September to address the venous issue. After the surgery his mother cuddled up in bed with him to help ease him to sleep. After a time she got up and went to a chair and logged onto her computer to check emails. When she finished she decided to crawl back in his bed to try to catch some much needed sleep herself. He awoke enough to tell her that she couldn't sleep with him at that time because Jesus was sleeping with him. This is the story that moved our friend to try to share his story…this child was not only aware of the love and support of family and friends as he struggled for life, but the comfort of a Savior who journeys with him.
Braxton's surgeon has advised, "I believe it is in the best interest of my patient to exhaust ALL options available to him to increase his chance of survival by increasing donor possibilities in case dialysis fails. This can be accomplished by 'listing in multiple centers'"–this means placing Braxton on donor lists at Cincinnati Children's Hospital in Ohio, John Hopkins in Maryland, and Vanderbilt in Tennessee. The problem here is that Braxton's medical card has denied the option of listing in multiple centers. The family's only hope now is to increase his pool of options in the Kentucky region. It is their hope that by sharing Braxton's story the heightened awareness might move Kentuckians to register themselves as live donors.
If you or someone you know are interested in learning more about being a live donor, please contact Lynne Polly, Live Donor Nurse Coordinator at University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital Transplant Center, (859) 323-5737.
Blessings,
Tracy