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The Colony FD battalion chief facing kidney disease
Firefighters from The Colony came together for a special cornhole tournament on Sunday to show support for a battalion chief who recently discovered both of his kidneys are failing.
THE COLONY, Texas - Firefighters from The Colony came together for a special cornhole tournament on Sunday to show support for a battalion chief who recently discovered both of his kidneys are failing.
Six months ago, Brent Young went in for routine bloodwork and a physical. The test results showed the 27-year veteran of The Colony Fire Department had polycystic kidney disease (PKD).
"We were shocked. We were like ‘oh my gosh!’ It’s been a whirlwind ever since," said Young.
Brent Young (center)
Young says he didn't have any obvious symptoms, but since his diagnosis the medical treatment and nutritionist advice have helped with the pain.
"Once I kind of realized that, I look back on these years of backaches, tiredness, headaches, blood pressure. Yeah, it was all related to this and I didn’t pay attention," said Young.
His Colony Fire family immediately put their heads together to fire out how to help their battalion chief.
They created a cornhole tournament, Toss for a Cause, that took place on Sunday at Grandscape.
There were prizes, raffles and people were encouraged to sign up to become a potential kidney donor.
Young is on the list for a kidney transplant. The average time on the transplant list is 3 to 5 years, but the more donors who sign up to see if they're a match, the less time it could take to find one.
Young has many potential donors already signed up, including fellow firefighters and his 25-year-old son.
"You don’t know how long it takes to go through them and actually find one. So you’re just on the waiting list and it truly is a waiting list," said Young.
Which is why the support means so much to the Young family.
"It’s humbling, it’s amazing. The firemen, the brotherhood, the sisterhood, it’s all amazing," said Sara Young, Brent's wife.
Today's event also raised money for the family if Young finds himself on dialysis in the future.
The Young family says they are leaning on their faith at this time to keep them positive.
You can learn more about how to become a kidney donor here: https://livingdonordallas.org/