SavillasHopeFoundation
January 28 , 2009
SILENT AUCTION
Click here to see how you can participate
January 5, 2009 TRANSPLANT DAY
January 5 was the big day of the kidney transplant. Stephen the donor and Savilla
are doing GREAT! Please be patient with reply's to emails
as we all are very busy around the recovery process.
Again, thanks for all your support.
On January 5th, 2009, Stephen McClelland unselfishly donated his right kidney to save my life. I am truly blessed and lucky to have a second chance at life. Dr. William Gourlay and his team performed the transplant at St. Paul's Hospital. Dr. Gourlay said it was a textbook surgery, and couldn't have gone any better. Stephen and I are both doing well.
In the beginning, I didn't want to tell anyone about my illness. I didn't want pity, and I was a private person. I thought I could handle it on my own. The more my health deteriorated, I realized I needed help. I also thought about others in my condition who may be in worse shape than I was. So I decided to go public.
My friend Angela Case took an interest, and she founded Savilla's Hope Foundation. Hakan Coskuner designed and moderates the website. He made video journals of my struggles. I wanted to make the videos for three reasons:
1.) To raise awareness about kidney failure and how important it is to become an organ donor.
2.) To remember the pain I went through during kidney failure so I will never take for granted my gift of new life. I will watch the videos from time to time to reming me of how lucky I am today.
3.) So that other people with end-stage renal failure to use these videos to show their family and friends a true example of what they are going through. It will give them a sense of reality of what kidney failure is like.
I am so thankful to Stephen and to all of you who stood by me during my horrible ordeal of end-stage renal failure. Although I was on dialysis for over a year, I was lucky I didn't have to wait 8 years on the transplant list. Thanks to your positive thoughts and your support, I now have new hope. Hope for the future. Hope for a better tomorrow. Hope for others who are waiting for a life saving organ transplant. With your help, we can give them hope for a light at the end of the tunnel.
If you wish to help, please visit the section on this site called "Ways you can help".
If you have kidney disease, and may need a kidney transplant, please visit the section called "I need kidney".
There is always hope.
Thank you,
Savilla Kress
Here is some information for people in similar situation. Click on link to download the information in Word format.
If you are in need of a kidney click here.
If you like to know more about how you can cope and live with kidney disease click here.
Ways that you can help:
1.) Sign up to be an organ donor at: http://www.transplant.bc.ca/index.asp
2.) See if you are eligible to be a living donor by visiting: http://www.transplant.bc.ca/living_donation.htm
3.) Contact local and national politicians and demand that they change the laws regarding organ donation to "presumed consent". This would mean that a person would automatically be an organ donor unless they opt out. 21 other countries have this program in effect, and there is virtually no wait for a life saving organ transplant. In these countries, only 2% of the population opts out. It is easier to keep track of 2% of the population than 98%.
4.) Make a monetary contribution or donate airmiles to Savilla's Hope Foundation. You may send a check to:
Savilla's Hope Foundation
336 Strand Avenue
New Westminster, BC V3L 3J2
5.) Make a bid on items you would like from the silent auction.
6.) Have a fundraiser, or join us in our fundraisers.
Like many women in their 20s, Savilla was full of enthusiasm and energy and she led a very active lifestyle. After studying in Italy, she returned to her home in Niagara Falls, NY at 21. She graduated from university and was working full-time as a lingerie designer for a major company in Buffalo, NY. She was also modeling and doing charity work. While Savilla was modeling in Toronto, she felt like she had a bad cold. One morning she woke up and could hardly open her eyes. Her face and her ankles were swollen. She was very weak and nauseous. She went home to Niagara Falls, NY that day where she collapsed and was rushed to the hospital.
Savilla was diagnosed with Iga Nephropathy and pneumonia when she was 21. She also had pneumonia at age 10. Several months prior to the diagnosis, she had noticed blood in her urine. She asked her OBGYN about it, and she suggested to Savilla "Just drink more water" and no tests were done at that time.
Over the course of 20 years, Savilla's kidneys slowly declined in function. In 2007, she went into complete renal failure. She began peritoneal dialysis in December of 2007. Savilla needs a kidney transplant. Her sister Helen, and her brother Frank both tested to see if one of them could donate one of their kidneys to Savilla. Unfortunately, neither one of them were compatible.
Currently, Savilla is on the kidney transplant waiting list. The wait is 8 years where she lives.
This site was started in August 2008 and we will include much more information on Savilla's progress as we go along. If you have questions or
if you want to help please email tosavillashopefoundation@gmail.com.
Thank YOU!!!!
Below a picture of some of her MONTHLY supplies Savilla needed to stay alive.
If you want more information regarding organ donation please visit www.transplant.bc.ca
YouTube videos showing day to day life are now online
As we are now OFFICIALLY a registered Foundation we have several ways to accept donations.
TD Bank
Institution 004
Account 5214304
Transit 9272
Cheques:
Savillas Hope Foundation
336 Strand Ave.
New Westminster, BC V3L 3J2
CANADA
You may also visit Savilla's swim suit website at www.Savillaswimwear.com to see some of her wonderful
creations.