My name is Ed Chaffin, I am 58 years old! I am Married to my beautiful wife Marcelle. I have two Kids & five Grandkids that I love very much. I do Home Loans at Augusta Financial in Santa Clarita. I like to golf, draw & paint, read, watch movies and travel with my Wife.

I was diagnosed with Polycystic Kidney Disease 10 years ago during a routine Dr’s visit. I told him that my Father had the Disease and that maybe I should get tested since it is hereditary. He did an Ultrasound on me and voila, I had Polycystic Kidney Disease as well. It doesn’t always lead to Kidney failure but in my case it did. I felt a sense of mortality after my initial diagnosis and a little bit of “Why me?” I was glad to have an early diagnosis so that I could do my best to put off the inevitable as long as I could. Most people never really get any kind of a warning and end up in the Emergency Room and immediately end up on Dialysis.

Before being on dialysis, I was very active. I used to ride dirt bikes, street bikes, played golf all the time and did P90X. Most of that has slowed down or curtailed. I don’t have the same energy or drive to do my job like I used to and because of that it has taken a toll financially. Life really does change when you are on dialysis. I get up at 4:30 a.m. every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and I am there until about 9:00 a.m. I have a ton of Dr’s appt’s now, between the Nephrologist, Vascular Surgeon - to check on my fistula, Cardiologist and Internist, they keep me very busy. Dialysis makes me way more tired than before. I take a nap every Saturday, it ranges from an hour to most of the day depending on how tired I am. I am hoping that after I get a transplant I will get my energy back so that I can spend more time playing with my Grandkids! I have a lot more life to live!

It is really important for me to have a Living Donor because the success rate is so much higher. It lasts much longer when you get a Living Kidney compared to a cadaver. Because I have the most popular Blood Type the wait time for a cadaver is 8 - 10 years here in Los Angeles. The 4 1/2 years I have been on Dialysis has taken such a toll on my body, I can’t imagine having to be on it for 6 more! I have a tendency to pretend like it’s no big deal & that I am fine, but really that’s not the case. When people ask me how I am doing, I say I feel good most of the time. The reality is, I feel good about half the time, it’s a grind! I try to have a positive attitude about it but it takes a lot out of me. Dialysis also shortens your life, it’s no picnic! It’s not as fun as I make it seem.

Being on Just a Kidney will hopefully help me find a Living Donor. Between all of my Friends and Family, I have had 15 people offer to donate but none qualified. I now need to reach beyond my Friends and Family to find a Living Donor. I’m hoping that Just a Kidney will be that for me. To be able to meet and connect with more people outside of my circle will give me a better opportunity to find a match!

Will you be my hero? Please sign up with Just a Kidney today to become a Living Kidney Donor!