Kidney Walk set April 28 in Lewes

The National Kidney Foundation will hold its 11th annual Southern Delaware Kidney Walk Sunday, April 28, at Cape Henlopen State Park. 

With nearly 600 participants in 2018, the 5K walk helps raise awareness of kidney disease, organ donation and the importance of early screening and healthy lifestyles for those at risk, while raising nearly $50,000 annually. The event also features vendors, a petting zoo, photo booth, CPR practice stations and more. 

Kristy Ferracci, a community outreach assistant for the foundation, has firsthand experience with kidney disease.

In 2004, Kristy was working at Milford Dialysis, where she met her future husband, Michael Ferracci, when Michael was one of Kristy’s dialysis patients. Michael was in need of a kidney transplant.

“Me having a bubbly personality, I would always talk with him during my shifts. He invited me to dinner for my birthday in January 2005, and we went to Red Lobster in Dover,” Kristy said. “That was our first date. We were both very nervous, and I remember ordering the broiled flounder. He told me that was the ‘most basic thing to order.’” 

She still remembers the first Christmas after they met, before they started dating. “He got me a Mickey Mouse scrub top,” Kristy said. “All my coworkers were mad that they didn’t get anything.” The two became engaged in April 2006 and were married by September of the same year. In January 2007, when Michael was due for testing for a kidney, Kristy suggested that she get tested as well to see if she was a match.

She was. The two surgeries took place on March 8, 2007. 

“This past March we celebrated the 12-year anniversary of the transplant,” Kristy said. “We are both doing well ... I still get teary-eyed when I think about it.”

Michael does, as well. “Every time he talks about it, even today, he cries,” their son, RJ Ferracci, said.  RJ dreams of being a dialysis nurse after graduating from high school. “The only thing new is I finally realized that you were right, and things have changed,” Michael said to Kristy. “I think part of fighting the disease is having a good support system in charge.”

The Ferracci family has been involved in the kidney walk all 11 years. “The first five years we were at Killens Pond, and we had to literally hike through the woods. It’s been a lot better since we moved to Cape,” Kristy said.

Many people use the walk as an excuse to dress up in fun outfits and support each other, often participating as a team. “Patients, families, doctors - everyone has some kind of tie to kidney disease,” Kristy said. Everyone who raises $100 or more gets a free kidney walk T-shirt. “I used to sell chocolate-covered pretzels to raise over $400,” RJ said. 

The kidney walk has sponsors and donors who help to make the event possible, including Beebe Healthcare, Christiana Hospital, Fresenius Medical Care, Nephrology Associates and Jimmy O’Conor, who owns Woody’s in Dewey Beach.

“Kidney disease kills more people than prostate and breast cancer,” said Kristy, who educates people about kidney disease and helps organize the event.

One in seven people ends up having kidney failure, she said, while one in three people is at risk of being affected. Having a transplant isn’t a cure; it’s simply acting as a Band-Aid, she said.

“You never predict how you’re going to meet the love of your life,” Kristy said. “This has changed our lives for the better. It’s nice to be able to do things as a family and not have to worry about going to dialysis.” 

For more information, go to www.kidney.org or call 410-363-9583.