There's a really amazing story out today in many publications about second year baseball coach Tom Walter and a freshman recruit, Kevin Jordan. Kevin was a highly recruited outfielder out of high school and was drafted in the 19th round by the Yankees, but decided he wanted to play ball at Wake first. Early in 2010, Jordan was diagnosed with the flu, but couldn't really recover. It turned out his kidneys were functioning at about 8% capacity and he would need a transplant.
None of his family were a suitable match to be donors, so it appeared that Kevin would have to join the long list of people waiting for a kidney and that he would have to undergo about 18 hours of dialysis treatment EVERY DAY. He decided to attend Wake anyway, which is an impressive display of dedication. Meanwhile, Coach Walter decided to see if he is a suitable match to be a donor. He is. My favorite quote from WFU AD Ron Wellman:
"I asked Tom if he was sure he wanted to do this and his response was that when he recruits young men, he tells them they are coming into his family and will be treated like a family member," Wellman said. "He had everything so well planned for Kevin, for his family and for his team. He is a unique individual."
Both player and coach are apparently out of surgery at Emory University Hospital and doing well. There is always some risk of complication in both donor and recipient, but we'll hope and pray for the best.
This has been a really hard year to support Wake Forest athletics with both football and basketball struggling mightily to live up to even paltry expectations, but this makes me extremely proud of our Deacon family. I hope Coach Walter gets the recognition he deserves and that Kevin is able to live a normal, healthy life whether or not he ever gets to play ball for the gold and black.
Read the USA Today article here (Thanks Tom!)
No comments:
Post a Comment