Aiken Church Is Helping A Member In Need

Aiken Church Is Helping A Member In Need
Mount Anna Baptist Church is holding a benefit to help Maggie Key with funds to get on a kidney transplant list

Friday, Feb 08, 2008 - 11:00 PM

By Joy Howe

Aiken, SC -- Maggie Key has been a member of Mount Anna Baptist Church, in Aiken, for the last 29 years.

Maggie has been a member of Mount Anna Baptist Church for the last 29 years. Her failing kidneys are taking to toll...she has a progressive kidney disease and has to go to dialysis three times a week. It takes energy and time...two things that are running short for Maggie...but help may be on the way.

She hasn't sung in a while, but she still knows the words to her favorite song.

Maggie Key, waiting for a kidney transplant: "I'll be all right, someday, I'm praying I'll be all right, someday."

They are good words for aggie to remember, she needs a transplant she can't afford.

Maggie: "I heards that it will last, at my age, give me 6 extra years."

Maggie has been on dialysis for over 20 years, which has cost her money and much more."

Maggie: "Real energy, 'cause I worked at Graniteville, and you had to have energy and I was a weaver, you couldn't sit still. Yeah, I had a lot of energy."

Energy she no longer has...but energy she needs to raise the $4,400 to get on the donor list. Because the disease is genetic, doctors won't allow family members to donate kidneys, so another type of family is donating...her church family.

Annett Dickerson, Maggie's friend: "She's served on our choir, she's worked on all kinds of capacities at our church, and we just thought it would not be fair if we did not put up an effort to help her raise this money."

Maggie may not be able to sing at Mount Anna, but Saturday, her church will fill with music for her, as choirs from all over the state come together to help save a life.

Maggie: "Oh, I just get happy...I just get happy."

Dickerson: "I mean if we don't help somebody while we have our being, what are we? What good are we?"

Maggie's song, "Be all right, someday," hopefully is getting closer.

The benefit for Maggie will be at Mount Anna Baptist Church, and is Saturday at 4:00 p.m.

There is also a "Maggie Key Kidney Fund" set up at First Citizens Bank.

http://www.wjbf.com/midatlantic/jbf/news_index/health_news.apx.-content-articles-JBF-2008-02-08-0021.html