Taylum Lamoureux just turned four years old on April 10.
It's been almost two years since he received a kidney transplant, and he's doing just fine, said mom, Desiree Lamoureux.
“He's doing very well,” Lamoureux said. “He's still monitored very well, and he still has his ups and downs with his blood work, but overall, he's growing, he's happy, and that's all we could ask for.”
Taylum was born April 10, 2013, with polycistic kidney disease, and had one of his kidneys removed when he was just five weeks old. His remaining kidney was removed just five weeks after that.
Because he had to be on regular dialysis at Toronto's SickKids Hospital, Taylum lived at Ronald McDonald House in the city for some two years, waiting on a kidney donation.
The boy finally received a transplant May 13, 2015, from Michelle MacKinnon, whose teenage son, David, also suffered from kidney disease. She was going to donate her kidney to him, but he died of a stroke in 2011, days before the surgery.
The Lamoureux family is always looking for ways to promote organ donation and to bring awareness to situations like Taylum's, she said.
That's why they will be participating in the 18th annual Irish Heritage Club of Sudbury's 1Saves8 Michael O'Reilly Organ Donor Awareness Celebration. It takes place May 6 at the Bell Park amphitheatre starting at 10 a.m. There will be free pizza and beverages available and live entertainment.
“We're doing this because we want to get as many people signed up as organ donors as possible,” said Bob Johnston, an organ recipient himself. “Nine Sudburians received organ donations last year. An organ donor is a hero and an angel to someone whose life they saved.”
Every year, more people attend the walk, and more people register as organ donors, he said.
“We're hoping for at least 150 people to come out,” he said. “It costs nothing, and you could save someone's life.”
Always double check your status, Johnston said, because there have been some changes to the rules. Many Ontarians mistakenly believe the signed donor card they carry in their wallet means they are registered, but that is not the case.
Now, by logging onto BeADonor.ca, Ontarians can confirm their current status as an organ donor. Every registered donor has the potential to save up to eight lives and enhance the lives of 75 others.
