“I was diagnosed with HUS. or hemolytic-uremic syndrome, when I was 13 months old. It’s something that affects your stomach and can ultimately damage your kidneys. Even with HUS, I was able to do normal things kids do — run and play. I had a pretty normal life. I just got tired easier.
“My kidneys have always been poor, but they got worse in 2013, and that’s when the doctors started talking about the possibility of dialysis. I understood what that meant. It had been explained to me several times before. I wasn’t sure what to think. I was nervous about it.
“We found out my uncle was a match for a kidney donation, and we came in the summer of 2013 and in December 2013 and it just got crazy. They found out my HUS was a different type than they thought in the summer and had to postpone the surgery. Then when we came in December, my heart stopped when I was in surgery, and they had to stop the surgery. It just wasn’t the right time for me to get a kidney, I guess.
“I remember that they let my mom come back right after the surgery and tell me that they couldn’t do the transplant. I had heard some of the nurses mention that several times when I was loopy. When I fully understood what happened, I just accepted it. I’ve always been told God will let something happen if he wants it to, and he’ll stop it from happening if he didn’t want it to happen. So, to me, that’s just the way it was. I guess that’s just the way I am.
“When the chain came around, it was just so sudden — just a month later for me. My mom was running around screaming when the call came. I was running around screaming with my mom. We were so happy.
“I was really excited. I knew it was time. I was going to make it work. I told myself before the transplant that I was going to make it work, and it did.
“I really feel great. I go walking every day. Sometimes I ride my bicycle. I feel like I’m pretty active. I do a lot of babysitting. I took my cousins to swim lessons the other day.
“As for my dad, I thought it was awesome what he did, to be willing to donate a kidney so I could get one. I love him for it. I think I would have done the same thing for him.
“To be a part of something like this chain gives me a good feeling. It is just crazy and amazing at the same time. It’s incredible, and I’m so thankful.”
Ryane Burns - 13
“To be a part of something like this chain gives me a good feeling. It is just crazy and amazing at the same time."