NZSEG’s People and Capability Director Jennie Parker has just boarded a plane to London for a mighty cause. Jennie will run the world-famous London Marathon to raise thousands of pounds for Kidney Research UK, honouring her twin sister Sue’s journey with chronic kidney disease.
In 2003, Sue was diagnosed with IgA Nephropathy and lost kidney function by 2017. IgA Nephropathy is a type of kidney disease where antibodies build up and cause damage to glomeruli, the small filters inside the kidneys.
Jennie and her family packed up their life in New Zealand to move to the UK in support of Sue’s planned transplant with her husband, but soon learned that this was not a viable donation — Sue’s husband was also diagnosed with IgA Nephropathy. Jennie made the admirable decision to donate her kidney to her sister in 2018.
After a rollercoaster of challenging compatibility tests, Jennie and Sue’s operations were a success, and gifted Sue a new lease on life. With Sue’s daughters saying they have their mum back, and Jennie and Sue’s plans for climbing Kilimanjaro, the donation was transformative for Sue and her family. The twin sisters marked the transplant with matching tattoos of the mangōpare — a hammerhead shark that symbolises unconditional love, strength, and courage.
There is always the risk of IgA Nephropathy affecting Sue’s kidneys again. “Research is the only way to discover future preventions, treatments, and cures. It is vital to keeping our loved ones safe,” says Jennie. “Taking part in the London Marathon will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Raising money for Kidney Research UK to end kidney disease is my biggest motivation.”
To train, Jennie has gone from being a 5-kilometre casual runner to running four times a week, gradually increasing her distance to 42 kilometres. “About one in 10 people worldwide have chronic kidney disease, many being undiagnosed. It seems crazy to me that both my sister and brother-in-law have the same disease, but we don’t know the causes. Nobody can tell us how or why it has happened. If researchers can better understand that, maybe we can stop it and put an end to kidney disease.”
Donate to Jennie’s fundraising page
here
, and support the urgent mission to end kidney disease. Run well Jennie!
