We are a family of four: Juliette, Arik, Andrea, and her older brother, David. Being a very close knit family, we are all involved in each other�s progress, development, and accomplishments. David and Andrea are especially close, and as parents, we are grateful they have each other.

Andrea is a beautiful and ambitious young woman who, at age of 19, is in desperate need of a kidney transplant. Unfortunately, she has suffered with ill health throughout her young life. At the age of three, Andrea was diagnosed with MPGN kidney disease, and began a battle that she still fights today.

In 2009, Andrea received a kidney transplant from her father, but Andrea continued to face struggles as her body tried to reject the kidney. Despite her ongoing illness, which often kept her out of school, Andrea remained a top-performing student at her high school and was ultimately accepted into a prestigious college in the northeast.

She is currently a sophomore in college studying biology and hopes to enter medical school upon graduation. She wants to be a doctor so that she can help to save the lives of other young people who suffer from chronic illnesses and life-threatening diseases.

See Andrea�s biography below and her college essay to get a better glimpse of her character:

Hi, I am a 19 years old young woman, mature at times due to my life struggles, but very childish other times when my life is normal and I want to have fun. I am first generation American (and a very proud one at that).

My parents are from Eastern Europe. My dad lived in Israel for 10 years where he served, and all of my grandparents are Holocaust survivors. My family is small as a result, so we stay close and appreciate each other.

I was diagnosed with a kidney disease at the age of three, revealed by very high blood pressure, and I was admitted to intensive care for four months to get my blood pressure under control, where I am told I almost did not make it. However, as I am also told, due to my will power to live and get out of the hospital�s confined environment, I survived and relearned how to walk and live my life like all other children my age.

When I was 14, my father gave me the gift of life with his kidney, and I started a new life on February 11th 2009 with more energy and ability to eat what I desired. Oh, by the way, I am crazy about good food and am a great food critic!

I had some great years in junior-high school and high school, where I uncovered my passion for medicine (before that I thought I wanted to become a professor like my grandfather because I liked to help and explain things to others). In my 19 years of life I have been very blessed with opportunities such as shadowing my pediatrician for two summers, shadowing an ENT doctor for one summer, and watch two transplants in scrubs (a liver and a kidney) right next to the surgeon at the Hospital of University of Pennsylvania. These experiences crystallized my desire to help others and give back as a future doctor. I am also blessed for an amazing family, my brother who is my best friend, and some good friendships I made along the way.

Today, I am a certified EMT and am helping my community by volunteering at a local rescue squad.

I have been attending college since 2013, where I am studying biology on a pre-med track. On campus, I tutor students in need. This year, I have been working as a resident advisor to support my dorm colleagues by helping them medically, psychologically or just by being there for them. I am also the president of the Salsa Club.

In high school, I started my private tutoring business in Math, Biology and Spanish, and since I was an honors student, I did a lot of charity teaching for those in need, including friends of my brother that could not afford hiring me etc. I was also involved in the Student Auxiliary as president, working at many charitable events, and was a camp counselor to little ones for two summers.

I was often very tired and admitted to the hospital many times due to infections because I have been on several immunosuppressant drugs. Somehow, however, this obstacles never stopped me from doing all the things I deemed important or necessary. It is hard for me to take NO for an answer, and as such, my ambition and drive helps me succeed to do what I need to.

All I really want now is to be able to live my life and do the things I must do to make a difference in today�s world with my existence. I am in need of another kidney. Blood type A or O.

Andrea

1. Lafayette student receives a kidney from a stranger   September 11, 2015


2. Lafayette student seeks kidney   January 11, 2015


3. TAP into Berkeley Heights   November 13, 2014