Tanisha Ellerbe

Family and friends of Tanisha Ellerbe are raising money for the nonprofit Help Hope Live to fund uninsured medical expenses associated with transplantation.

Tanisha has chosen to fundraise for Help Hope Live in part because Help Hope Live assures fiscal accountability of funds raised and tax deductibility for contributors. Contributors can be sure donations will be used to pay or reimburse medical and related expenses. To make a tax-deductible donation to this fundraising campaign, click on the Give button.

For more information, please contact Help Hope Live at 800.642.8399.

Thank you for your support!

As you may or may not know, I have end stage renal disease and I’m currently on dialysis. I was diagnosed with Chronic Kidney Disease back in 2008 after giving birth to my last kid, Branden. Since finding out my diagnosis, I have been diligent to keep myself healthy for as long as my body would allow. I have so much life left and receiving this transplant will allow me more time with my family and friends. It will allow me time to become someone’s grandma (God willing) and it will allow me an opportunity to see my last kid grow into a man. In November of 2021 I noticed a drop in my GFR which is kidney function…it fell to 19 percent. After catching COVID (or another bug), my kidney function fell even more to 13 percent, which began the conversation of a transplant. I began to feel the effects of the failure and by May of 2022, I had to have a hard conversation with my nephrologist. Together, we decided to start me on dialysis. With the proper education, I chose peritoneal dialysis for myself which allowed me to still work and travel if I needed to.

Before going on dialysis, I began my journey of getting listed in as many places as humanly possible. I am now listed in Las Vegas with UMC, Salt Lake City with Intermountain, and Loma Linda in San Bernardino. I recently traveled to Arizona to get listed with The Mayo Clinic. Good thing with Mayo is I will receive credit for the time I’ve already been on dialysis and their wait time is 2 – 3 years. I should be listed there in the coming weeks. I received a call in December for a kidney, but I was a backup. That now puts me at the top of the list for my blood type, so I have been patiently waiting for that call. I am maintaining well and I follow doctors orders, but nothing can replace receiving a new kidney. I am fundraising because I recently (4/11/23) have been made aware that I am climbing the list with Intermountain in Salt Lake City. Their waitlist is 18 months to 2 years. If they call me, then that will require to travel to Salt Lake City for my transplant and stay there for 4 – 6 weeks while being monitored closely. This fundraiser will not only pay for any financial costs I incur from the surgery, but also to pay for my travel and my lodging while there for that period of time. I also have already incurred over $7,000 in medical expenses from dialysis alone, which Medicare has only begun paying their part this January.

I appreciate all the prayers and well wishes, but if you can find it in your heart (and your budget), please consider donating to me. One good thing about this fundraiser, is the funds will be disbursed to them and they will pay my medical costs and they occur. I will not have to report these funds to IRS, like you do with other fundraisers, so it’s a win-win for me and a blessing for us all.