Scott & Steve Reid

For the past two years Scott has been battling kidney disease. As time progressed his kidney function has continued to decline to critical levels, and he is now in end stage renal failure. It was determined his only hope of a normal life in the future was to join the national kidney transplant list. The average wait time for a healthy kidney is estimated at 3-6 years. In the interim, Scott has been on dialysis 7 days a week for 10 hours per day. Scott struggles to live a normal life but keeps a positive attitude and the hope of living a better life in the years to come. I recently had the opportunity to visit Scott and saw first-hand that this is no way to live.

Steve Reid (brother/kidney donor)

As Scott’s younger brother, I knew if there was any chance I could help him out, I was going to try. Though Scott and I live a thousand miles apart, we have remained close, speaking on the phone several times a week and keeping up with each other’s lives. Rather than making him wait on the transplant list and risk death, I decided to begin testing to see if I was a match. The testing process started in late January when we were told my blood type was a match. From there I went through several months of tests to ensure my overall health was strong and my kidney was suitable for donation. Just last week, I flew to Wisconsin (where Scott lives) to go through the final stages of extensive testing prior to surgery.

The Fundraising Campaign

Even with insurance, the cost of out-of-pocket transplant expenses can be staggering for things such as: co-payments for the multiple doctors’ appointments, anti-rejection medications, travel, care giving expenses, and medical supplies.

To help with some of these uninsured expenses, a fundraising campaign in Scott’s honor has been established with HelpHOPELive (formerly NTAF), a nonprofit organization that has been assisting the transplant community for nearly 30 years. All contributions are tax deductible, are held by HelpHOPELive in the North-Central Kidney Transplant Fund, and are administered by HelpHOPELive for transplant-related expenses only. Please consider a donation.Your support of our family is greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Steve Reid
Scott’s Brother
610-687-6106
[email protected]