Daughter seeks kidney for mother through 'rolling billboard'
Jenny Raspberry points to the messages she has written on her van windows — seeking a stranger’s help to save her mother’s life.
“My mom, Paulette, needs a kidney. And the best way for that happen is for her to get a live donation match,” she told CTV News London.
For the past month, Jenny and her family have been driving around Kincardine, Ont. with this cry for help on their van and car.
“Our Grammy needs a kidney, Type O blood! Is it you?” reads one of the vehicle billboards.Jenny Raspberry points to the message she wrote on her van to find kidney for her mother. Oct. 28, 2021. (Scott Miller / CTV News)
So far, no match, but lots of encouraging words and waves from strangers as the Raspberry family tries to keep their matriarch with them.
“The world is a better place because she’s in it and she wouldn’t do this for herself. She wouldn’t put herself out there, but I’m pretty much willing to do whatever it takes,” said Jenny. “My kids aren’t ready to say goodbye to their Grammy yet.”
Paulette Raspberry has been in need of a kidney for six years. She’s one of over 1,000 Ontarians on the province’s kidney transplant waitlist. No one in Raspberry’s family is a match so far. All that is needed? Type 'O' blood, aged 18 to 70 and relatively healthy.
“We are at the point now where we have to go out to the community and just ask people, do you have it in you to save a life? The time is coming where we’re really going to need that for her,” she said.
Paulette Raspberry with her granddaughter. (Source: Jenny Raspberry)
Jenny says her mom is shocked by the outpouring of support so far, as she awaits surgery to start dialysis, to essentially keep her current kidneys from totally shutting down. Although no match has been found so far, her daughter holds out hope that someone will see her family’s rolling billboard and save her mother’s life.
“My daughter is really close with her and said I just want Grammy to be there to walk down the aisle with me as my maid of honour. We’re just trying to get the last few years in with her to make all the memories, we can.”
To learn more about Paulette’s need for a kidney, you can visit www.akidneyforpaulette.com.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.