A Marinette mother has posted a new ad on a billboard in hopes to save the life of her 35-year-old son.
Linda Zajac’s only child Terrence Rice, father of two, desperately needs a kidney. He is in stage 5 renal failure and has spent two years on a waiting list.
"It has not been good,” said Rice. “You know it turned my life upside down."
He said without dialysis he would not be alive right now.
Rice was born with a small kidney, a birth defect. Then around the age of 28 doctors learned his other kidney was shrinking, because of kidney disease. Five years later, despite medicine, his kidney failed. His small kidney is only functioning at 5%, which is 10% less than what is needed to stay alive.
"A month ago I couldn't even take care of myself,” Rice said. “I had to come move in with my mom for a week until my body got better."
His mother said she had to do something.
"He just kept getting and feeling worse and worse," said Zajac.
His mother just spent $1,200 to put up a billboard near her home.
"There's no amount of money that you can put on someone's life," said Zajac.
She hopes the billboard will help find a donor for her son, who is a father of two.
"It has changed him," said Zajac. "He said the only thing that's keeping him going is his children."
Rice said he is one of thousands of people currently on the waiting list for a kidney.
About 15-20 people have volunteered to donate their organs, but unfortunately they were not a match.
The family hopes this billboard reaches as many people as possible in hopes to get the right donor.
The billboard instructs people interested to call (715) 330-6015.
