Santa Cruz County family searching for kidney donor

An Aptos family is in need of a hero in the form of a kidney donor.

Jody and Greg Cole received the news in October that Jody needed to put her name on the kidney transplant list. She is now one of the thousands in the United States who are hoping for a miracle.

“It was a pretty awful day in the fall. Now it’s getting real. Her function has been declining for a long time, but when they sit you down and say, ‘You need to get on the transplant list,’ it gets real. So between now and then, we’ve been trying to get the word out that we need a kidney,” Greg Cole said.

There are roughly 100,000 people across the country in need of a kidney, and 33,000 of those are in the same region as Jody Cole. That makes the wait time about seven to eight years until she is expected to find a match.

Greg Cole took to social media not only in hopes of helping his wife and high school sweetheart, but also in hopes of bringing awareness to the issue.

“This is not just for us. It’s for everyone that’s suffering and needs a kidney. To let people know you have two and you only need one,” Jody Cole said.

Jody Cole now has 15% of her kidney function and will have to resort to dialysis in a few months if they can’t find a living donor.

Jody Cole said what keeps her going is her loved ones and the fight she still has left within herself. “I feel really bad because we’ve been together for 39 years and now I feel like he’s sort of stuck with me and i’m not a healthy person, but he’s my champ, my champion, my night and shining armor. I don’t know what I would do without him (Greg), I would probably have my head in the sand, I wouldn’t get out of bed everyday, so I’m fighting so I can spend my time with the love of my life.”

The family has done extensive research on donating kidneys, they say their insurance will cover all medical costs and testing for the donor. Greg added he will foot the bill for any wages lost during the recovery period.

They said it only takes a few weeks to heal until your body gets back to normal. They said the testing prior to the surgery is extensive to make sure it is safe for everyone.

The Cole’s add even if you are not a perfect match for Jody, but you are cleared to be a donor, the doctors will find a match for the donor and for Jody. So even if you are not the perfect match, you can still help her.

If you would like to take the survey to see if you could be a donor, visit http://www.ucdonor.org/#. If you would like to help Jody Cole, you will need to know her birthday is 06/17/64.

Greg Cole said if you have any questions or want to contact him, his email is greg.cole@comcast.net