Terry Lindsay knows not all heroes fight fires or crime, some just literally give part of themselves.
Down to 10 per cent function of his kidneys, a guardian angel stood up to change his life.
“I had been waiting for a donor for almost two years, but was told it could take up to 10 years to get one. I just didn’t have that kind of time,” said Lindsay. “Then she stepped in.”
She being the Penticton woman who did not want to be identified in the media, and was only acquainted to Lindsay through slo-pitch.
A community that rallied around Lindsay last year when they held a fundraising tournament for him for just this moment when he would need money for transportation, accommodation and other necessities of life while he goes through surgery and recovery.
He doesn’t plan to let anyone down in the fight to regain his life back.
“I was an umpire, I wasn’t a player. I am supposed to be hated. Here are all these people in a moments notice pitching in, donating and taking part. For me that is very humbling,” he said.
“The community has been supportive of me and continue to be. I am going to do my damndest to make sure everything comes out well.”
Depending on how well the kidney takes, his hope is it will mean 15 to 20 years without having to even think about dialysis. Things have been going well since he was admitted to St. Paul’s hospital in Vancouver.
About one week after surgery Lindsay was released to live in nearby suites as they continue to monitor him.
He said he is lucky he is still at a stage in his life where a transplant had the capacity to improve the quality of his life.
“If I waited too much longer it may not,” he said, days before going in for his surgery. “It takes a special person who would do this.
“Especially for someone they know, but even more so for someone maybe they don’t know that well. It takes quite an individual to do that and she is. It is a gift that I definitely appreciate and she knows that.”
Having worked as a teacher giving back to youth and volunteering his time in various capacities, Lindsay is very much a believer in what goes around comes around.
“Now here is the situation where the community has come together to help me. I guess I couldn’t ask for anything more positive than this. I am blessed, I truly am blessed,” he said.
March just happens to be kidney health month. On Wednesday, Penticton area residents who have been the recipient or have donated a kidney will be speaking at the Penticton Newcomers Club, 260 Brunswick St. from 7 to 8 p.m.
They also remind people that becoming an organ donor is not done on B.C. drivers’ licences anymore and it is simple as completing an online registration form to legally record your decision at www.transplant. bc.ca.