A small crowd gathered at Victoria’s Clover Point to support Canadians living with kidney-related diseases on the blissful and sunny morning of June 1.
Hosting its 17th Kidney Walk in the capital city, "The event was created to raise money for families, offer real-time support, fund life-saving research, and advocate for those impacted by kidney disease," explained organizers Michele Tessier and Jesse Sawyer.
With walks taking place across the country, the two said every penny of the $14,000 raised during this year’s Victoria walk will go toward helping people struggling with kidney-related issues nationwide.
“One in 10 people in Canada are suffering from kidney disease, and a lot of folks that are, actually don't know that they are because usually the disease is quite well advanced before people have symptoms,” said Tessier.
This was the case for Tessier’s dad and Sawyer.
“My dad, it’ll be 22 years ago this June, that he had a kidney transplant,” she said. “He had not been feeling that well, and when he went to the doctor, he was informed that both of his kidneys were working at less than 30 per cent, which was quite a shock.
“Soon after that, (he) was fortunate enough to get a phone call in the middle of the night that there was a donor for him and unfortunately, that means that some other family lost someone, and that's why my dad got a second chance at life.”
Beyond raising money, the two organizers said the event was also an opportunity to raise awareness and promote kidney donation.
“We're really trying to promote [that] you can be a living kidney donor,” said Sawyer. “Most people don't realize that you can survive perfectly healthy lives with just one kidney, and you can give that gift to somebody who really needs one.”
Sawyer said he owes his life to his aunt, who donated one of her kidneys to him at the age of 64.
“The transplant itself was rough to be honest but then after we found out that I was the 1,000th person to receive a live organ transplant in B.C., and that was 18 years ago,” he said.
The two also emphasized the importance of yearly check-ups to detect early signs of kidney disease, which can be inherited or caused by a previous illness.
“Anyone who might be considering [donating a kidney], you can rest assured that there is a big process where there's lots of testing to ensure that you're healthy and fit enough to do it,” said Tessier. “You are always given the option to opt out if you, at any time, feel uncomfortable or if something happens
If someone ultimately decides to go this route, Tessier wants donors to know that this gesture could mean the world to someone else.
“If you do that, the opportunity to be able to save someone's life is there and what an amazing gift to be able to give,” said Tessier.
To know more about the event or to donate to the cause, visit kidney.akaraisin.com/ui/BCYWALKS25/g/Victoria.
