In the emergency room Jacquelyn Patterson received her diagnosis of kidney failure. A routine doctor’s visit had detected protein in her urine just months before but she chose to deny the warning signs. “Not right now’ is what she thought as a single mother of two teenage children. Once diagnosed with kidney failure she began dialysis and has been on dialysis for over a year. Her poor health and the time she spent on dialysis meant she lost her job after being a nurse for almost twenty years. She first relied on family, friends and her church, but after 8 months she had exhausted her resources. The Alabama Kidney Foundation was able to help the Patterson family pay their gas bill that was unusually high due to the cold winter. “The AKF has really been helpful to me – a God sent”

Alabama Transportation

Assistance Program

Thomas Hubbard graduated Suma Cum Laude from Syracuse University and spent his career as a senior legal assistant on New York’s Wall Street. When his sister died of kidney disease he was left as the sole caregiver for his Mom so he moved to his mother’s hometown of Clanton care for her. He has enjoyed living in Clanton and had begun a second career away from Law. “I was a working guy, loved my job and loved going to work” said Mr. Hubbard. His plans were interrupted when he recently suffered two heart attacks, which has contributed to his kidney failure and caused him to begin dialysis just 5 months ago. Because of dialysis he is unable to work and therefore unable to pay bills and transportation costs to treatment. “It’s a big adjustment, I miss working. It’s not easy having a disability and not being able to work”, said Mr. Hubbard. The Alabama Kidney Foundation helped pay for a water bill, medicines and his transportation to dialysis. “The AKF helped me with a lot of stuff. It took a lot of stress off me to know help was on the way’’ said Thomas Hubbard. “The AKF has been very good to me, I appreciate that they helped me out a lot.”

Daily Living Needs

Michelle Stacy has been on dialysis for two years after suffering from high blood pressure. This past summer her power bills were unusually high because of poor insulation in her mobile home. In addition to this, she had a leaking roof that had to be fixed “It’s so hot, and I’m trying to fix the roof myself” said Michelle Stacy. These extra expenses left her without enough money to pay all her monthly bills. She received help from the Alabama Kidney Foundation to pay her power bill. “The AKF has been very helpful and everyone I’ve meet from there is nice,” said Mrs. Stacy.

The Kelly family from Anniston has had tragedy strike twice. In June of 2005, Terry Kelly was diagnosed with End-Stage Renial Disease. Then in January 2006 he lost a kidney to cancer. While battling kidney disease and recieving dialysis treatment six times a week, Mr. Kelly's oldest daughter Kala, was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor. She underwent an eighteen hour surgery at Children's Hospital. Click Here for the rest of the story.

Two years ago, blood work confirmed that Jerry Chamblee of Brookside, Alabama, was suffering from renal Kidney failure. With that diagnosis, he began hemodialysis at Fresenius in Gardendale, three days a week for 3 hours at a time. After a year and half of hemodialysis, Mr. Chamblee was having problems with port access and required a number of surgeries. Click Here for the rest of the story.

Ms. Williams is a registered nurse who began dialysis in 2005 after diabetes destroyed her kidneys. When a leg amputation (not uncommon among kidney disease patients) forced her to quit work, she lost her health insurance. Because of the difficult time she was having, she sought help from The Alabama Kidney Foundation. "The Alabama Kidney Foundation has stood behind me and been my biggest supporter," said Ms. Williams. "The AKF stepped in and paid for gas to warm my home." Ms. Williams is currently in physical therapy learning to walk on a prosthetic leg and plans to go back to work once she is able.