A Roller Coaster Ride to a Fresh Start

It's September 25, 2017. Monday. This date has been on my mind's calendar for over four years. Today is transplant day! Later today I will receive a donated kidney from my youngest sister, Sandy. Surgery is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. It has been a long, arduous road. Type 1 diabetes was diagnosed at age fourteen, some fifty years ago. Along the way, two heart attacks, open-heart triple-bypass surgery, a cancer surgery, and kidney dialysis brought me here. My story details navigating the peaks and valleys of dealing with multiple health challenges, while through it all life carries on. A fairly successful refereeing career in junior hockey, a life-enhancing ten-year stint with the Vancouver Police Department Reserve Unit, and a very rewarding two-year work experience in Toronto are interwoven. You will meet some of the many doctors, nurses, and other health professionals who play key roles on the journey. You will also meet Debbie, my life partner and leader of my cheering section. And of course, Sandy, whose gift of life reaches the peak. We all live unexpected lives to some degree. How do we make the best of it? It's a journey of faith, hope and perseverance.