Following surgery on Nov. 29, 2023, I find myself getting stronger each day as I work through some residual pain and consume a potent cocktail of 14 immunosuppressant pills a day to protect this greatest gift of all. A shout out to my medical team at AdventHealth Porter in Denver, and my miracle working wife Joan who has been by my side during this entire 2-1/2 year journey back to health. Think how you can save a life by sharing your spare. Meanwhile, I’ve started to share lessons learned with a fraction - for now - of the 90,000 Americans seeking a kidney donor. This is my new calling.
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Here's what it took to locate a living kidney donor. It's my hope this story will provide other kidney patients with tactics they can pursue. As Mahatma Gandhi has said, "You don't get it if you don't ask for it."
It could be time to tell your kidney story to the world.
HERE'S MY STORY
My thanks to real estate celebrity Barbara Corcoran for her help with my search.
Learn more about becoming a living kidney donor, watch the TedX Talk at: www.NKDO.org
My thanks to weekend anchor Jaclyn Allen for her interest in covering my plight.
Contact: jeff@blumenfeldpr.com
Members of Kidney Donor Athletes came to Denver and Boulder in June for a reunion of their March 2022 advocacy climb of Kilimanjaro. All were kidney donors and all but two out of 22 climbers successfully summited, supported by some 100 porters.
In early 2024, Jeff testified before the Colorado Legislature on the importance of creating a tax credit for those who donate a kidney to a stranger. It could save thousands of lives.
Efforts to modify the National Organ Transplant Act of 1984 are underway as modifyNOTA.org continues to lobby Congress. Read Jeff's editorial in support. (Cut and copy this link to your browser.)
On November 25, 2024, just four days shy of my one-year kidneyversary, I hosted a fun celebration here in Boulder. Creatinine is 1.20, GFR is over 60, and all other blood test results are looking great. It truly is a medical miracle.
I am feeling "Transplant Tough."
And it feels good. I've skied for 67 years, but had to miss the 2023-24 season for obvious reasons. Happy now to get back out there to celebrate my kidneyversary. Notice the safety cone-colored parka. I'm taking it slow. Watch out!
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