Olivia Cook (left) and Danica Kilander (right) are playing on the jungle gym at Thrive Community Fitness in Ferndale. Kilander with be donating one of her kidneys to Olivia this summer. — photo by Lillian Furlong

Now she needs a transplant.

Autosomal Recessive Polycystic Kidney Disease enables cysts to attack the organ, causing difficulty in filtering impurities. Most children do not survive birth; those who do survive do not live very long.

LivFest, a music festival held on the Fairhaven Village Green on Saturday, raised money for Olivia’s transplant and the expenses she will face for the rest of her life. LivLife, the campaign that put on the festival, had raised more than $15,000 as of May 24 for the association. Once the campaign has raised about $200,000 for Olivia’s transplant-related expenses, it will continue to raise money for other children in need of transplants, said Danica Kilander, LivLife coordinator and Olivia’s kidney donor.

Olivia’s father was the first choice to be the donor, but he was diagnosed with two forms cancer and continues to battle the disease. Kilander offered her kidney to Olivia after meeting her at the gym where Kilander works as a fitness instructor, she said. The transplant is set for July 14.

There are about 107,000 candidates on the national organ donation waiting list as of Monday, according to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network website.

The current system in Washington state requires organ donors to sign up or “opt in” by signing a donor card, checking a box when obtaining a driver’s license or signing up with a State Donor Registry.

New York State Assemblyman Richard Brodsky proposed a new organ donation measure in late April that would assume people want to be organ donors when donating organs in New York. Brodsky’s daughter has received two kidney transplants.

The measure could help children like Olivia receive a kidney transplant earlier.

If a deceased person is not an organ donor, the family often declines donation due to lack of awareness, fear or misunderstanding, said Karen Haggen of St. Joseph Hospital Foundation.

Under the “opt-out,” or presumed-consent, system, individuals would be presumed donors unless otherwise noted by family.

A presumed-consent law could have a dramatic impact on the number of organs available to patients, according to the Presumed Consent Foundation website.

Haggen said she agrees that a presumed-consent law would increase the number of organs available. The likelihood this would be well-received in Whatcom County, however, depends on personal experience, she said.

New York would be the first state to adopt an “opt-out” option.

“It is unlikely that an ‘opt-out’ option will be acceptable to most citizens because the closest kin are the ultimate decision-makers in this very emotional decision at the time of brain death,” said Emily Gibson, director of Western’s Health Center.

About 18 people die every day due to the scarcity of organs available for transplant. One donor may save 50 lives with blood, tissue or organ donation, according to the U.S. Health and Human Services Department website.

“I feel like being a living kidney donor is a very personal choice,” Kilander said. “Living is giving.”

Other countries that currently have presumed-consent laws include Spain, Austria and Belgium.

Haggen said having someone at the Department of Licensing to inform donors might be more proactive than depending on Department of Licensing staff to pitch the idea.

Kilander said she thinks everyone has something to give, in general. In her case, it was her kidney.

A fundraising barbecue for the LivLife campaign will be held Saturday at The Market on Fairhaven Parkway. Other upcoming events include a wine tasting with an auction, and a masquerade ball with a silent auction, Kilander said.

“The short and simple message of it all,” Kilander said, “is that this [disease] is a burden too great to carry alone.”

For more infomation about Oliva and her transplant story, visit www.COTAforOlivaRC.com .

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