Group puts 'Hope in Action' to help man in need of kidneyBy Jeff Himler
BLAIRSVILLE DISPATCH
Friday, December 21, 2007
As Christmas approaches, family, friends and acquaintances are standing in line, ready to give a precious gift to Scott Dietrich.
Dietrich, 36, who resides in the Derry Township village of Cokeville Heights, just south of Blairsville, is hoping for a new lease on life--in the form of a kidney transplant.
He said he's been floored by the fact that there's no shortage of others willing to donate one of their organs for the surgical procedure at UPMC. That includes fellow congregants at the non-denominational Living Hope Church near Latrobe, where Dietrich is a worship leader and elder, as well as customers he's developed relationships with as an outside sales representative for NAPA Auto Parts in Latrobe and Greensburg.
"The response has been amazing," said Dietrich. "There are so many people who are ready to step up to the plate for me.
"It's love in the true sense of the word. You can't put a price on it."
But there will be a price associated with Dietrich's proposed transplant procedure.
Dietrich will be unable to work for about three months, during his initial recovery from the operation. That means he and his wife, Phoebe, a pharmacy technician at Blairsville Pharmacy, will be reduced from two incomes to one at a time when they will face extra bills.
Among those expenses will be a daily fee for accommodations UPMC offers patients and their families.
Dietrich noted he likely will stay in one of the hospital's four family homes for two weeks after he is released from inpatient care.
During that period, he will be required to report to the hospital at 6 a.m. daily for testing to monitor the health and function of the donated organ.
While that schedule gradually will be scaled back, there will be additional costly commutes to Pittsburgh for follow-up appointments with his doctors, Phoebe said.
But there is a group that is stepping forward to help with that aspect of Dietrich's care, as well.
Westmoreland Hope In Action, a grassroots charitable organization that had its beginning at the Living Hope Church, has chosen the Dietrichs as the most recent recipients of assistance it offers to local families that have found themselves in an unexpected crisis situation--such as an illness, sudden death or accident.
"We are attempting to help those families who have fallen through the cracks and are not eligible for government assistance but have a legitimate financial need," said Nicol Michel, of Blairsville, president of Westmoreland Hope In Action (WHIA). "We believe it is our responsibility as Christians to provide support to these families."
The group's stated mission is to "financially assist and empower people who have had a crisis that has severely impacted them and their families."
The assistance is offered on a one-time basis to each recipient. To be considered, prospective recipients are expected to
"have a good work ethic and have not been chronically dependent on benefactors or social services" and to be ineligible for free state assistance "because of their own industry."
Recipients also must be willing to reveal their complete financial picture to WHIA's application processing committee and must be willing to receive and act on financial counsel.
Because it takes at least two weeks to process applications it receives for assistance, WHIA is unable to help with immediate needs such as food, gas or childcare. But the group will refer such cases to other charitable organizations, such as the Salvation Army.
To obtain an application for assistance from WHIA, potential recipients should call the Living Hope Church at 724-424-7262.
Though WHIA got its start at Living Hope Church in the spring of 2005 and previously helped another church member who needed a liver transplant, applicants need not be affiliated with the church, noted Gloria Dietrich, of Latrobe, a board member of the charitable organization and Scott's mother.
She added that the crises WHIA addresses need not be of life and death proportions. She pointed out the program helped a family that could not afford to pay for needed vehicle repairs.
The organization has helped an average of 3 to 7 families each year, depending on the level of need in each case, Michel indicated.
She said other beneficiaries have included an individual who could not make mortgage payments after being injured in an accident and another person who suffered a stroke and was overwhelmed by bills for medication.
Gloria Dietrich already gave her son the gift of life twice. In 1989, about 18 years after she brought him into the world, she donated one of her kidneys for his first transplant operation.
Scott Dietrich, who grew up in New Derry, explained a birth defect damaged his kidneys--one so severely it was removed when he was five months old.
Through careful management of his condition, he was able to get by through most of his childhood years on his one remaining kidney--although it was functioning at only 30 percent of its normal capacity as it filtered wastes from his blood.
"He was fine until he was 17. Then things started to go haywire," his mother recalled.
As his kidney function decreased even further, he was placed on a diet low in sodium--one of several substances in the bloodstream that is regulated by a healthy kidney.
Though the kidney he received from his mother was a good match, as with any transplanted organ, it was viewed by Dietrich's body as a foreign object--requiring constant medication to protect it as much as possible from his own immune response.
But the transplanted kidney still has suffered premature wear and tear--to the point now that he is in chronic renal failure and is a candidate for a second transplant.
Dietrich explained, as his kidney function has diminished, the most marked change has been a decrease in his energy level.
"It just wipes you out. It's a constant feeling of being run down," he said. He explained he must take weekly shots to stimulate production of red blood cells--another process in which the kidney plays a vital role. Meanwhile, steroids he takes to suppress his immune system "mess with your joints and muscles."
Since his kidney has gone into decline, he noted he's gone from taking four medications to a total of 12. Doctors, he said, are "trying to balance things out and make (his kidney) last."
Eventually, a kidney transplant will be required to prevent Dietrich from going on dialysis treatments.
While one fellow Living Hope member did not pass muster for serving as a donor for Dietrich, another quickly volunteered and is set to begin extensive testing to determine his suitability for the critical role.
"This is someone who is willing to lay down his life for a friend," Dietrich stressed. Though there have been many advances in transplant procedures, he noted any such surgery still can pose a risk for both the organ donor and the recipient.
If tests reveal that a prospective donor has a marked risk of developing diabetes or other conditions that would put a strain on the sole remaining kidney, the person will be eliminated from consideration, Dietrich explained.
Phoebe is unable to serve as a donor because her blood type is not compatible with her husband's.
If need be, Dietrich's 60-year-old father, Bill, is ready to donate one of his kidneys. The elder Dietrich deferred to his wife as a donor 18 years ago so he could continue studies to be a registered nurse, a profession he pursued after losing his job at the Westinghouse plant in East Pittsburgh.
Gloria worked for nearly 30 years as a school bus driver--for the Derry Area and Greater Latrobe school districts.
The kidney his mother donated has lasted Scott Dietrich for the 15 to 20 years doctors had predicted it would. But, Scott noted, the older the donor, the less durable the kidney is expected to be.
The ideal situation will be finding a live donor who is Dietrich's age or younger and is otherwise a suitable match.
But he also has undertaken testing and paperwork needed to be placed on a list for potential receipt of a donated organ from a cadaver.
Others who already have been on the list would have a first claim to any organ that becomes available, depending on the suitability of the match.
Until he obtains a new kidney, Dietrich is subject to dietary restrictions even more extensive than those of his childhood. It may mean bypassing some of his favorite dishes this holiday season.
He must avoid major sources of potassium--another dietary component that is regulated by the kidney. If potassium in the blood increases to high levels, it can interfere with functioning of the body's muscles--of particular concern when it comes to the heart muscle.
Dietrich was surprised to learn how many foods contain potassium and are now off-limits--including potatoes, citrus fruit and spinach.
He noted, "We have lots of chicken," the only meat he is allowed to eat, as well as rice and pasta--the latter without tomato sauce.
To help raise money for the Dietrichs and for other future recipients of WHIA assistance, the group will accept donations for a gift-wrapping service it will provide on the upper level of Westmoreland Mall, by the central elevator. Hours will be 4 to 8 p.m. today, noon to 8 p.m. Saturday, 1 to 8 p.m. Sunday and noon to 5 p.m. Monday.
Monetary donations, made payable to WHIA, also may be sent to the Living Hope Church, P.O. Box 11, Latrobe, Pa. 15650.
Michel noted the group welcomes other types of assistance, including donated services, pre-paid gas cards and vehicles that are in good operating condition, to help families with transportation needs. Also needed are gift baskets with new merchandise for WHIA's annual silent auction and Steelers party.
Other WHIA fund-raising events have included a spaghetti dinner and a yard sale.
For more information about helping WHIA, call Karen 9-3 weekdays at 724-424-7262.
Friends at the Living Hope Church also have established a separate fund earmarked solely for the Dietrichs. Donations payable to the "Scott Dietrich Fund" may be made at any S&T Bank branch.
Scott Dietrich is hoping some money will remain in that fund to help someone else who needs it down the road, just as there is still some money available in a fund the New Alexandria Lions club set aside to assist the Dietrichs with Scott's first transplant.
Jeff Himler can be reached at jhimler@tribweb.com or 724-459-6100, ext. 13.
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