My wife Susan’s journey with kidney disease started when she was just 16 years old. It was then that she came down with whooping cough and strep throat, which caused permanent damage to her kidneys. After her illness, she knew she’d eventually need to go on dialysis. It finally happened when she was 23, shortly before we were married.

Neither of us was willing to let kidney disease get in the way of our life together. She continued to work as a nurse, and home hemodialysis meant that we could still travel. Once, we even took her dialysis equipment with us on a six-week trip to Europe. It was a bit risky to go overseas and still ensure Susan could dialyze, but she was determined, and it worked out well. 

I became a volunteer with the Kidney Foundation around the time my wife started dialysis. Now that I’m retired, I’ve set two main goals for myself: to make more time to play music in my community (I am a member of a community concert band and a brass jazz combo!), and to support the Kidney Foundation’s work in an even more significant way, as President of the National Board of Directors.

It has been a pleasure to witness the improvements that have been made over the years, some of which benefited Susan directly. For example, after two failed transplants, one with her sister as a donor, researchers uncovered the possibilities of non-related spousal transplant, which meant I could give my wife one of my kidneys.

It was the easiest decision I ever made, and it gave me five more wonderful years with her. 
Susan passed away at just 60 years of age, primarily from the toll that decades of treatment had taken on her body. She ended up living 40 years longer than they predicted when she started dialysis, which is good, but there is still no cure for kidney disease.