Howdy! I’m Erin Stutts, and on July 28, I have the incredible blessing of donating my left kidney to my colleague and friend, Steve Harlin. Steve is an Agricultural Science teacher at College Station High School, a father to a 19 year old son, an avid outdoorsman, a Type 1 Diabetic, and he’s been living with kidney failure for over a decade. In the two years that I’ve worked with him, his kidney function has reduced to the point that he needs a transplant or he’ll have to start dialysis. He’s been on the transplant list for a deceased kidney, but that is a years-long process, and deceased kidneys typically only last 5-8 years. Thankfully, I’m a match! A living kidney transplant means that his energy will return and he’ll be able to live a long life teaching and advising FFA members, enjoying hunting, fishing, and spending time with his family. The kidney transplant also means that he’ll be off work—unpaid—for 3 months. He will be on anti-rejection meds that suppress his immune system, so he can’t be in a high school full of teenagers. His insurance covers all of my medical expenses, but not all of his. This fundraiser will help replace 3 months of his salary, assist with his travel expenses for surgery and follow-ups, and help pay his medical bills. My expenses as a donor are fully covered by the National Living Donor Assistance Program. Our surgery will be at the Methodist Transplant Hospital in San Antonio—they do more living donor transplants than any other hospital in the nation! To prepare for surgery, Steve has lost over 50 pounds and he’s spent this summer working on detailed lesson plans for his classes for the time he is gone. My prayer is that he can spend his recovery focusing on being as healthy as possible and that during recovery he’ll be able to do some of the socially-distant things he enjoys, like hunting and fishing. Easing his financial burden would go a long way toward helping him with his recovery!
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