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Ursula West reflects on her 4.5 year old heart prior to competing in the cycling race by Doug Armstrong
David Landsberg, Dallas, TX, received his independence from dialysis on July 4, 1999. Listen to him recount his Guinness Book of World Records triathalon by Doug Armstrong
  David's parents, Phil and Lee, discuss their son's illness and post-transplant recovery by Doug Armstrong
by Doug Armstrong, Bob Fox, and Joel Lerner
Available at Intramurals.com
A Birthday at the Games by Maureen Fox
 
 
A Birthday at the Games

by Maureen Fox

The refrain of "Happy Birthday" greeted Jackie Hurst (of Team Northern California) as she completed the women's 20K bike race. Today, June 24, is the third anniversary of her kidney transplant, and she is here in Epcot celebrating with her 72 year old mother, her kidney donor.

We have our transplants to get back to life!

There are three generations of the family here for their second family trip to the Transplant Games: Jackie, her daughter, her mother (now 72), and her aunts (ages 74 and 78).

Jackie has been busy at the 2000 Games, competing in not only bicycling, but also volleyball, basketball, the softball throw, and the shot put.

When Jackie isn't busy with the Games, she teaches 6th grade, works with a 4-H Club, serves as a peer counselor for other transplant recipients and families, is a volunteer speaker with the organ procurement organization in Sacramento, is a volunteer fundraiser University of California at Davis, raising money for transplant research.

In her fundraising efforts she helped design a teddy bear which is given to post-operative transplant patients (the bear comes complete with round tummy and cheeks). The bear also serves as her companion and good luck charm at the Games.

Jackie's mom was the oldest living donor at UC-Davis to date. She was 69 when she donated and as she tells it, had to convince the transplant team to consider her as a donor. They were a bit skeptical given her age, but she passed all the tests with flying colors, underwent laparoscopic nephrectomy, and two weeks later was back to normal activities. In fact, the two went to a horse show the week after their surgery.

Not much slows Jackie down! Even before her transplant, she never missed a day of school. She credits her ability to keep going to the support she got from her students and their parents. They kept her going when she didn't feel well after dialysis. Jackie's transplant was scheduled to take place right after the end of the school year so she could be recovered in time to join in an annual school trip to Yosemite ten weeks later. You can bet she made the trip.

As she says, "We have our transplants to get back to life!"

 

 
 
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