Norman Family Tries To 'Save Nanny," Find Kidney Donor For Grandmother

A family in Norman has launched a campaign they call "Save Nanny" to find a kidney donor for their grandmother.<br /><em><a href="http://savenanny.com/" target="_blank">Learn more about the "Save Nanny" campaign.</a></em>

Monday, December 27th 2010, 12:20 pm

By: News 9


Jennifer Pierce, News 9

NORMAN, Oklahoma -- A family in Norman has launched a campaign they call "Save Nanny" to find a kidney donor for their grandmother.

Learn more about the "Save Nanny" campaign.

Alma Prater, known as "Nanny" to her grandchildren, suffers from the genetic condition Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). The 74-year-old grandmother has been on daily dialysis treatments for almost two years and on the kidney transplant list for nearly three years.

"You really are so confined with having to be on the dialysis that you don't have much of a life," said Alma Prater.

She spends most of her day in a small bedroom manually flushing bacteria from her body.

"If I could get a kidney this disease is gone," said Prater.

Two of Prater's siblings have died from complications of ADPKD. Her daughter also has the disease. Because the condition is so prevalent in the family, Prater's relatives have been ruled out as potential donors. Her family said they had to reach out to the public to find someone who can save Prater's life.

"We believed that we had to take some sort of action," said Alana Praytor, Prater's only child. "With Nanny's rare blood type (O-) we felt reaching out to the community might be the most effective thing we could do to give her a chance."

The family is using the Internet, digital billboards and other public relations efforts to find a direct kidney donor.

"The Prater family originally contacted us about paying for advertising in Oklahoma City and we just thought if there is something better we can do for a family that is in need, obviously there is a major need," said Gabe Sherman with Whistler Outdoor Advertising. "Do they need to be spending money on advertising or do they need to look at ways at raising awareness without having to spend that extra money?"

So Whistler donated the billboards free of charge. Now, Prater's family said they hope their "Save Nanny" campaign will reach someone willing to help.

"I think there is someone out there that God will touch their heart," said Prater.

The billboards went up in Tulsa and Oklahoma City at noon Monday. There are two signs locally, one on I-35 between Moore and Norman and one on I-44 near the Kelley exit.

 

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