Turning Trial into Triumph

At the age of 72, most seniors look forward to enjoying retirement - traveling around the globe or spending special time with children & grandchildren. Bill, on the other hand, received some alarming news of a chronic kidney disease which would eventually lead to a life on dialysis or a kidney transplant. The 11 years that followed this diagnosis became the biggest trial of his life. Yet, Bill and his wife Helen’s firm belief that God can make beauty out of ashes turned what they had to face in this illness into a blessing for many.

Bill knew that getting a kidney transplant wouldn’t be easy. But he and Helen never thought it would be one of the most difficult challenges he would ever face. The road blocks they encountered, one after another, drained their time, energy, and began to sap their faith.

With the waiting list being 10-12 years for a deceased kidney, they knew they had to find a living donor and were blessed with a number of friends who volunteered.  Once Bill was approved at a local center, they began screening his donor and after 4 months of testing, rejected him. Helen recalls the bitter disappointment. Over the next year, Bill was approved at two additional centers but none of them were willing to screen his donor who had previously been rejected.

Through each bump in the road, Bill and Helen witnessed God performing miracle after miracle in their life. One particular incident took place when their search for a donor led them to the National Kidney Registry and one of its executives in New York. While speaking with people in New York, Bill found out that another Saddleback member had also recently gone through a transplant. He felt God encouraging him by locating someone nearby who was in his church and in the middle of a similar health crisis.   At his suggestion Bill and Helen took their case to a transplant center in San Diego where Bill was approved and they agreed to screen his donor who was previously rejected. The donor was approved! This miracle from God also gave them back something they felt was slipping away since this whole ordeal started — hope.   

“When we had done everything we could do but it still didn’t work, we needed to get out of the way and let God take the lead,” said Bill.  

As difficult as this experience was, Bill and Helen both knew early on in the process that God wanted them to minister to others who faced similar health issues. Three months before Bill’s transplant surgery date, they launched the very first Saddleback Church Kidney Support Group meeting. At that first meeting, only a few people showed up, but Bill & Helen did not give up. They felt that after all the hardships they’ve gone through in the transplant process itself, the one main thing they learned is to never give up and have hope in God. 

They remained faithful in hosting the twice a month meetings having the mindset that even if just one person showed and benefitted from the meeting, they had succeeded in doing God’s work. It took over three years before this support group began to show some growth in numbers.  

Today, there are a number of patients, plus their loved ones, attending this support group and 29 patients have received transplants. Bill and Helen have successfully assisted so many people facing kidney disease that the Mayo Clinic in Arizona sent two of their lead transplant physicians to come speak at one of their support group meetings. 

Many local dialysis centers refer their patients to the Saddleback Church Kidney Support Group for support from fellow transplant patients. Bill and Helen make it a point to ensure that all patients are welcome — whatever background one has, “we welcome anyone who is in need of a little support to get through this tough time of trying to get a new kidney,” Helen explained.

Most recently, Saddleback Church Kidney Support Group helped launch Saddleback Church’s very first blood drive at the Lake Forest campus. Bill and Helen arranged for this to take place on a Sunday during worship services, so that anyone who is not a believer may have a chance to visit a Saddleback service if they wish to do so. Helen took the opportunity to invite people to join her during the service and one couple took her up on that offer, expressing to Helen how much they enjoyed attending Saddleback. 

Another patient who was at the end of his rope in his search for a kidney was introduced to the support group. After his first meeting he said to Helen, “I can’t even tell you how much better I feel already just being here able to talk to you all about the struggles of this illness.” With a strong conviction in his voice, Bill recalls why he and Helen persevered throughout the ups and downs of his transplant process as well as the journey of this support group: “We must learn how to recognize the needs of the people around us and sympathize with their pain. God comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others.” 

Learn more about support groups at saddleback.com/supportgroups