Local couple trying to help provide a kidney to a North Carolina woman
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Laura Montrose is by all accounts a wonderful lady who lives in Ellerbe, North Carolina, but health-wise has not had an easy life...|||||||
"...a regular kid who loved to play and learn new things. One day, she no longer felt like moving, playing, or learning. Struggling for years with pain and lack of energy, she was finally diagnosed with dermatomyositis at age 5. She spend the next two years living in the hospital, trying to get her symptoms under control. Her parents were told constantly that she would not live much longer. She was not supposed to live to age 15 as hers was the worst case of the disease that the doctors had ever seen. The disease gnawed away at all of Laura’s muscle tissue and then started attacking her organs. The doctors were at a loss because they didn't know much about the disease or how to treat it; they tried a multitude of drugs and large amounts of steroids.
Ultimately, Laura was a fighter, and she was able to send her illness into remission. Despite beating the odds at age 8, she had to learn to walk again, was completely blind for 6 months, and continually had to undergo numerous surgeries on every organ possible including her eyes. Eventually, all the treatments caused kidney failure, and as of 2018, Laura Montrose has been on the kidney donation list for a few years. She finally has found a donor, but money is short"
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| Laura Montrose |
Melanie Montrose Starrett, is a Newton Co. resident & is someone I've known for many years. She's Laura's cousin. For quite some time, Melanie has followed the plight of her relative & wanted to be able to help, and it turned out she was able to do just that.
As fate would have it, her life partner & the father of her child, Daniel Davidson, was able to give Laura the ultimate gift - the gift of life. After years of Laura waiting for a donor match, it turns out Daniel was exactly what she needed - a match for the new kidney that will give Laura what she needs to continue on God's Green Earth.
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| Daniel & Melanie |
So, all's well that ends well, right? Well, not quite. Or, at least, not quite yet. What most people don't think about is this - while there is a process in place for a person getting a new kidney, a lot of folks don't really think about the other person. The person giving that gift of life, you see. There are expenses involved. Travel, time off of work & a whole host of other things. You can't just give up a kidney & then get back to work the next day. In a situation like this, most folks don't have the financial wherewithal to handle it. Help is needed.
And that help is out there, my friends. That's what community & family is all about.
And to that point, a GoFundMe has been set up to help facilitate this gift of love & life.
Please visit & see how you can help make this dream a reality.
This story is developing & we will keep you posted.
Kind Regards,
M.B. McCart, TPC Editor
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