Hudson’s Journey
During this year’s Village Fourth, I ran into Jamie and Andrew Nash and their beautiful son, Hudson Joseph William Nash. Hudson was born “with significant damage to both his kidneys due to a blockage to his urethra while he was developing in utero,” Jamie tells me as we enjoy the after-parade festivities in Manning Park. “Hudson’s kidneys do not function well enough to adequately support his body,” she adds, noting that “the damage is irreversible and will require him to go on peritoneal dialysis within the coming months and receive a kidney transplant within the next one to two years.”
Jamie and her family attended an event in Washington, D.C., the following week, at which she was invited to speak about her situation with Hudson and where President Trump signed an executive order overhauling the kidney transplant and dialysis market. Melania Trump, along with Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar were on hand for the signing. “It was such an exciting day,” Jamie says, “and it would be wonderful to run something in Montecito Journal to build awareness in the local community around kidney disease, transplantation, and Hudson’s story.”
She and her husband are hopeful they’ll find a living donor transplant, but even if they do, he will most likely require additional stints of dialysis and multiple transplants later in life. Hudson has three options: a living kidney donation (which will give him 15 to 20 years of kidney function), a transplant from someone who has died, and almost daily ongoing dialysis the rest of his life.
Hudson will most likely start dialysis in the next few months. A living donation could allow Hudson to avoid staying on dialysis for too long, which in turn will greatly improve his long-term health and quality of life. “
By sharing this information,” she says, “we hope to increase awareness and find someone who might be willing to consider being a living donor for Hudson.
“Our goal is to get his message out to as many people as possible,” Jamie says. “We’ve heard amazing stories of people stepping forward who have never met the person they are donating to. Human kindness at its best and we would be forever grateful. Words cannot even begin to describe what it would mean to our family.”
If you think you would be interested in being a Living Donor for Hudson, or simply would like to learn more, please follow Hudson’s Facebook page and send him a message via: www.Facebook.com/AKidneyForHudson.
