LOVE

Wanted: One Kidney!by Tish LeveeFor more than 20 years TracieSkaggs and her husband, Mike, havebeen giving to the community in thewest county. Now it’s time for thecommunity to give back. Tracie needsa new kidney, and she’s looking for aliving donor.Tracie was diagnosed a year agowith IGA nephritis, an autoimmunedisease thatleads to kidney failure. Last October,Tracie began peritoneal dialysis, whichremoves excess water, chemicals, andwaste products from her kidneys.Unlike hemodialysis, peritonealdialysis can be done at home whileasleep––eight hours every night. Butthe anxiety, leg cramps, and painTracie experiences on dialysis meansshe doesn’t sleep very well. Being ondialysis also means her diet’s restricted;her favorite tomatoes, avocados, andpotatoes are “no-no” and liquids areseverely limited. She’s supposed tohydrate for the severe leg cramps butmust restrict her fluid intake. “It’s areal balancing act,” she says.Dialysis deals with kidney failuretemporarily; the real solution’s anew kidney. Tracie is registered withUC San Francisco, where over 400kidney transplants are performedannually––more than a third of themfrom living donors. One of the leadingkidney transplant centers in the world,UCSF is the second-largest center fortransplants from living donors. Thebest possible treatment option for aperson with end-stage kidney diseaseis a living kidney donation; it willkeep working for an average of 18years. Tracie could wait 7 ½ years for akidney from a deceased donor.Tracie has lived in Guerneville formore than 30 years, and Mike is a thirdgeneration resident. Together theyoperated J’s Amusement Park until2003, when they converted it to CampOutback. For the last eight years theirHalloween Haunted House has raisedfunds for individuals and familieswho needed help. One year the fundsbought a wheelchair van for ConnorBrown. Tracie’s illness meant there wasno Haunted House last year, but “itwill be back this year!” For many yearsthey opened the amusement park atthe end of the season for local schoolsto raise money for sports programs.Every year, Tracie and her partnerat All About You beauty salon inSanta Rosa, with their clients, turnthemselves into “Elves With Attitudes”at Christmas time. They adopt severalfamilies, and make sure that everyonein the household has gifts. Thechildren all get new clothes and toys,and their food drive ensures everyonehas plenty to eat for the holidays.Recently, Natalie Cole appearedon “Larry King Live,” appealing fora living kidney donor, and 12 peoplecalled in while she was on the air.Tracie isn’t famous; she’s a very privateperson, who says, “Coming forwardlike this isn’t easy, but it’s necessary.”But Tracie’s gifts to the communityare famous locally.Being a living kidney donor is mucheasier than it once was. The donor’skidney is removed through three orfour small incisions, the largest about3”. Recovery is quick, and the donor’susually home in two to three days. AsSebastopol attorney Dee Schilling––who donated a kidney at UCSF lastyear––says, “It’s no big deal.” Medicarecovers all the donor’s medical costs.Recently a University of Minnesotastudy, going back to 1963, found that,“…kidney donors who are carefullyscreened for major health conditionshave a normal life span, a healthstatus…similar to that of the generalpopulation, and an excellent qualityof life. [their] risk of kidney failure isactually lower than … in the generalU.S. population.”Find out more about kidneydonation and see “The Gift of Life,”a video, at http://www.ucsfhealth.org/kidneytransplant/?gclid=CK_y6L6r3JkCFRwwawodjSVyWA or call1-800-482-7389. http://www.kidney.org/transplantation/livingDonors/info.cfm, the National KidneyFoundation site, is also good. Tracieneeds a donor with type O or O- blood,but if you’re a different type, paireddonation programs mean you couldstill donate. Leave Tracie a messageat 707-695-7591 if you’re interested inbeing a possible donor.Tish Levee, a free-lance write living inSanta Rosa, is a living kidney donor.© Copyright Tish Levee, 2009. All rightsreserved4/16/09 - www.westcountygazette.com - 17