Calgarian with life-threatening condition part of new campaign to boost organ donation

There’s a new appeal for help in saving the lives of others.

It comes from a Calgary woman who’s hoping an organ donor comes forward to make a huge difference.

“I’m in kidney failure,” said Judy Morrison.

It’s the result of a condition she was born with, which has been steadily getting worse in recent years.

“It’s very, very serious, life-threatening,” Morrison said, “so I need a kidney in a desperate way.”

People who’ve learned of Morrison’s plight have now come together in a new effort to help her and others hoping for a kidney transplant.

It’s a new online campaign called “Kindred Kidney.’

“It’s a site to try to join people who might potentially want to donate, with those needing a kidney,” Morrison said.

One of the people involved in the ‘Kindred Kidney’ campaign is Lily Ahonen, who donated a kidney to a childhood friend in 2019.

“I’m a nurse and a foster parent for medically fragile children, and some of the kids I’ve cared for have had transplants,” said Ahonen. “I just saw how it improved their quality of life.”

Four years after receiving one of Ahonen’s kidneys, her friend is doing well, and so is she.

“I have my kidney function checked regularly and I’m doing great,” Ahonen said. “It was a win-win situation.”

The Kidney Foundation of Canada offers support programs for patients, as well as information for prospective donors, including a program that covers costs for living donors who need to travel to provide a kidney.

“A kidney transplant is the best treatment for kidney failure,” the foundation’s Jill Goth said. “It offers a really great quality of life for people.”

Morrison is hoping to find a match with a living donor.

“Once I get one, I’d like to help others in this situation, because I know how difficult it is,” said Morrison. “A living donor is the gold standard, so you could potentially have 15 to 20 more years of life – it’s impressive.”