Well, 16 years ago (March 10, 1994), I was anticipating the birth of my first born, and only child! The ride has been a bumpy one, but one that has made me stronger as a mother and as a Christian and I've learned what unconditional love it all about. In September, 1994, my 6 month old was diagnosed with Oxalosis, a disease that would would eventually kill him, if he didn't receive a kidney/liver transplant. He was placed on dialysis 22 hours/day. I knew at that point, his dedication and will to live was going to determine his overall success.
In June 1995, Jake and I moved to the San Francisco area to await transplant. The Lucille Packard Children's hospital was going to be our new 'home' for a while. Jake had some evaluation to be done before he'd be ready to be placed on the national transplant list (UNOS). After 21 failed attempts for transplant, on November 21, 1995, we get the call that the doctors found organs, in Arizona. Unfortunately, a 9 year old was involved in a drunk driving accident and Jake's life was in the hands of his parents to decide to donate the needed organs. After seeing a photo of Jake and hearing Jake's story from one of Jake's doctors, the parents decided to allow their son to be a donor! I struggled with the fact that a child would die so that mine would have a 2nd chance. The organs matched Jake's needs so the doctors brought them back to San Francisco for the transplant Fortunately, after an 18 hour surgery, Jake had a successful transplant!
To be continued...
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