Kidney for Nolan

Michael and Sandy Kings' son, Nolan age 12, was born with Posterior Urethral Valves. He is now in need of a kidney transplant. Nolan has surpassed the life expectancy that his doctors expected when he was born. He was not supposed to live past 1 month old, but now he is 12 and in need of kidneys. Sandy is a match and will be donating her kidney. Both parents will need to be off from work for this procedure! Even a $1 will help!

Hi, this is Mike, Nolans' dad. The above was written by 2 awesome people. Michele and Faith Schaade. They are wonderfully good people and truly care.They created this fundraiser. I am one of those guys who feel uncomfortable asking for and receiving help. Life gives you what you can handle and it’s your duty to handle it and take care of your family. But, this is out, they created it. So, I figured I should just swallow my pride, embrace it, share Nolan's story and believe in the kindness of family, friends, and friends we haven't yet met.

In the spring of 2010, my wife Sandy went for a regularly scheduled ultrasound to check on the growth of the baby. It was during this time that an abnormality was discovered in his kidneys. We were sent to a local specialist who ran tests and diagnosed Polycystic Kidney Disease and said that the unborn baby would be unable to sustain life. We were devastated, but had to have a second opinion. We went to a Rush Medical Specialist, who gave us much better, but still bad news. The baby had Posterior Urethral Valves and they prevented the kidneys from developing. We were told he would be delivered and then rushed to the OR for surgery to remove the valves.

On October 8th, 2010, Sandy was admitted to Rush to have her labor induced. On the morning of October 9, 2010 Nolan was born. He was crying, his numbers were looking good. It was better than expected. They let him stay with us for a while and we absolutely fell in love with him. He was a fighter! Later he was taken to the Pediatric ICU for testing and monitoring. He had kidney function, but the valves needed to be removed. He was transferred to Luries Childrens Hospital in Chicago. He underwent surgery 24 hours later. He spent the first month of his life in the Hospital, it was a very difficult time. When he was released, he was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease caused by the Posterior Urethral Valves. As he grew his kidneys would not be able to keep up and he would require a kidney transplant.

Early this year we met with the kidney transplant team at Luries Childrens. They are great and have been awesome. It is getting close to time for Nolan to get his transplant. The time had come to look for a donor. Sandy shared the news and people lined up to be tested. It was awesome. Early on in the process we got great news! We have a Match! Sandy is a match! This is great news, now they will be able to plan and schedule the surgery for when it is best for Nolan. Before his kidney function drops to unsustainable levels and before he develops any complications to other organs caused by the kidney disease. We are told the transplant will happen in the next 3-6 months.

Nolan is the most caring, kind, thoughtful, smart, funny, quick witted 12 year old you will meet. Even with his disease he puts others first. He doesn’t want anyone to know he is sick. He doesn’t want to be treated differently. He has had a rough go of it, frequent Dr. visits, being poked and proded for tests, hospitalizations due to UTIs, increasing medications, this guy has been through a lot in his life. He handles everything like a champ! I am proud to be his father. Having a child with health issues has to be the most difficult thing a parent will have to deal with in their life. As Nolan prepares to enter Middle school as an seventh grader, becoming a teenager, he also has to go through a kidney transplant. I know he is scared. He asks tough questions and wants the truth. He asked me, why him? Why was he born this way? Heartbreaking.

In the same boat as many, things are becoming more difficult. Everything costs more, even with insurance the medical bills are a lot. And we have 2 family members having surgery. Donations will be used to sustain the family during and after the transplant surgery, medical bills, medication and maybe a little something special for Nolan. He deserves it!

Thank you. We appreciate everyone.

And again, Thank you to Michele, Faith and our entire Hawthorne Family.