Michigan couple's story to be included in Chicken Soup book

Three Rivers, Michigan

Thursday, October 29, 2009

(Three Rivers Commercial News, as published on Saturday, October 19)

A decade ago, Ken Tabbert of Three Rivers, Michigan, faced serious health issues, but made a miraculous recovery and now, the vice president of Jim Vetter Chevrolet Buick in town and his wife Linda are thankful for the gift of life he was given through an organ transplant and thankful for each new day.  Their story, entitled "Resilience," has been published in the newest Chicken Soup book - Chicken Soup for the Soul: Count Your Blessings." The book will come available November 3. According to www.chickensoup.com, Chicken Soup for the Soul: Count Your Blessings is 101 stories of "gratitude, fortitude, and silver linings."

"This follow-on book to Tough Times, Tough People continues Chicken Soup for the Soul's focus on inspiration and hope in these difficult times," the web site reads. "These inspirational stories remind us that each day holds something to be thankful for - whether it is having the sun shine or having food on the table."

Deb Harrell of Three Rivers, a fellow churchgoer at the Three Rivers Church of the Nazarene and family friend, authored the story.

"People need to hear this; people need to read this," she said. "The incredible amount of strength and faith both of them displayed was inspirational to people that watched them walk through that journey." 

In 1999, Ken found out his kidneys were failing due to a polycystic kidney disease, Linda said. He was eventually placed on a national list of those seeking transplants, to see if a matching kidney would come available. Meanwhile, eight people from Three Rivers stepped up as willing to be evaluated to see if their kidneys would match. Six could not follow through due to underlying health problems or incorrect blood types, but one appeared to be a good match and the transplant was scheduled for January 25, 2001. On December 7, 2000, at 6 A.M., the two awoke to a phone call from the University of Michigan saying they had a kidney that was a good match for Ken.

"The miraculous thing about that was the Ken had been on dialysis for six weeks," Linda said. "The call came Thursday at 6 A.M.; we had been scheduled to be at the dialysis center in Oshtemo at 7 A.M. But the dialysis center called the day before and rescheduled for Saturday at 7 A.M."  If the Thursday appointment had remained the same, at the time of the life-saving phone call the couple would have been on their way north to the center - with their bulky cell phone at home. And the kidney could have gone to someone else.

They jumped in their vehicle, which as an SUV allowed them to navigate the day's blizzard conditions safely, and arrived in Ann Arbor. He was in surgery by 5 P.M.; it lasted two and a half hours and he headed home Sunday. A followup appointment not long afterward entailed another trip to Ann Arbor in wintry, slippery weather - and they found themselves stuck on I-94 just a bit past Battle Creek.

"All of the off-ramps were filled with trucks stuck in the snow," she said. "It was literally a standstill. I was panicked; he was bleeding from an incision - I knew we had to get to the University of Michigan." 

She got out of her Blazer and went to a truck on the side of the road and pounded on it, seeking access to the CB radio. She then learned there had been an accident near Jackson, snarling the traffic.

"He (truck driver) radioed ahead, and in an hour there was a policeman coming down the other side of the highway with a snowplow," she said. "He plowed the left shoulder of the road so we could follow him. We followed the snowplow all the way to Jackson." 

It turned out that the bleeding was nothing serious, and "since then he's never had a rejection episode," she said. "The kidney functioned perfectly; his health is wonderful." They subsequently received a letter from the family of the donor, a 22-year-old killed in an accident shortly after he returned from military service in Japan. 

"We are eternally grateful to organ donors and for the gift of life that Ken was given," Linda said. "Every day is a miracle. We have the letter we received from the young man's mother framed and on the wall, so we remember the gift we were given and we never take one day for granted." 

Linda Tabbert is grateful for the work of her friend in putting their story on paper. 

"She's a beautiful writer," Linda said. "She was asking me to tell her what happened, she wrote it and submitted it, and it was accepted. I was more than happy."
--Three Rivers Commercial News (story no longer appears on web site)

 

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