My Story
Hello, my name is Jody Gholson.
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I went to Tabb HS in Yorktown, VA, and entered college in 1984. I left school to pursue a career in music/musical theater. After many years of living for myself, I met a woman with 2 little girls that changed the course of my life. Although things didn’t work out with their mom, Taylor and Tiffany gave me a reason to be a better man. I began attending church regularly and trying to be the best father to those girls as I could be.
In 2003 I was diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure (CHF). I was having trouble breathing and on my first visit to the ER, I was told I was having an asthma attack. In reality, my chest was filling up with fluid. My "ejection fraction", which is the efficiency percentage of blood being pumped out of my heart, was 5%. A healthy person would be 55-65%. With heart function that low I would likely not survive any kind of heart attack. In 2007 I received a pacemaker/defibrillator to increase my odds of survival.
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I met my wife Rachel while working at a restaurant called Murphy’s Tavern. Rachel and I have two children together: Tucker (11) and Lylah Grace (7). Rachel is a gift from God. Without her I’d already be dead. She has been a strong advocate for my health in our home and with doctors since we met.
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After many years of poor blood circulation my kidneys have failed as a result. In December of 2020 I was place on the kidney transplant list at University of Michigan. Right now, Rachel and I do at-home Hemo-Dialysis for four hours per day, 4-5 days per week, since May of 2020. As of May 4th of 2022, I had been on this dialysis routine for two years.
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The statistics for transplantation are staggering. There are more than 90,000 people on the kidney transplant list and someone new is added approximately every 14 minutes. However, only about 20,000 transplants are performed each year. More than 4,00 people die waiting every year.
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A transplanted kidney from a deceased donor functions on average 8 to 12 years, but a living donor kidney functions on average 12 to 20 years. What does this mean to me? A few years ago, I was privileged and proud to share a father daughter dance with my oldest, Taylor, at her wedding. With a deceased donor kidney, I may live to see Lylah, currently 7 years old, graduate High School. However, with a living donor kidney I could possibly walk her down the aisle and by the grace of God meet Tucker and Lylah’s children.
That is why my family and friends have been working to get the word out. My amazing wife Rachel is my dialysis caregiver and a homeschool mom. Lately, we have been discussing putting Tuck and Lylah in public school to prepare for Rachel to go back to work if the pace of my decline picks up.
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What do I hope to accomplish with this website? A life without dialysis, full of time with my wife Rachel, my children and grandchildren. I also want to continue doing what I believe God created me to do, serve Him and share the hope I have in Jesus with as many people, as I am given time to serve.
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I live in Muskegon, MI with Rachel, Tucker and Lylah Grace. Through Tiffany and Taylor I am also a grandpa (Papa Bo) to four grandchildren: Miranda, Charlotte, Dawson, and Thomas John.
My wife Rachel, our son Tucker, and our daughter Lylah Grace.
My girls Taylor and Tiffany, and new grandson Thomas John.
A new addition to the family, Izzy.
How to Help
I want to see my Tucker and Lylah Grace become God-honoring adults. I want to walk Lylah down the aisle and see Tucker become the husband and father I am trying to be to him. I would love to have a relationship with my grandchildren, all of them. I want to grow old with my wife and honor God with all the life he will give me.
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So pray. Pray for the donor God has already decided for me. The reality is that the most likely one will be someone who a family has just lost. I need prayer today, but they will need prayer too. Financially, it is an expensive process. There are many programs and I have health insurance through my employer, but there are many expenses that are not covered. I will also be out of work barring any complications for about 8 to 12 weeks. I am not concerned about losing my job, but I will not get a paycheck during that time. In the first year following transplant I will need to be on anti-rejection drugs, which cost between $1500 and $2,000 per month. Certainly, insurance or government programs can help but the percentages they pay will still drive us deeper and deeper into debt.
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Would you help spread the word? You can send any interested donor to this website to get to know me, and also to see exactly how the process works on this page.