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Retired Roanoke County firefighter seeks donor amid kidney failure

Kurt Kipley has been searching for a donor for more than two years

ROANOKE COUNTY, Va – After more than 40 years of serving the Roanoke County community, a retired firefighter is now turning to the community for help.

“The reason I wanted to become a firefighter was because it’s kind of like a family tradition. And I’m actually a fifth-generation firefighter,” explained Kurt Kipley.

He spent his entire career fighting fires across multiple stations in Roanoke County; however, after struggling with high blood pressure, a trip to the doctor changed his life forever.

“After the test and come back, he advised me that my kidneys were no longer functioning and I would have to go on dialysis, one way or the other, and so I went ahead and got the ball rolling on that and started peritoneal dialysis,” Kipley said.

Since then, Kipley has spent more than two years waiting to find a person with Type B-positive blood who would match him for a kidney donation.

“I didn’t expect it to be, you know, a short type of thing but I’m still, I mean it’s, I still probably have a ways to go,” said Kipley.

So now, he is turning to the community he served in hopes of finding a match.

He hopes his story will encourage others to become organ donors and help save lives.

“The number of people that you can save, you know, if you, if you donate your organs after your passing is remarkable,” said Kipley.

If you feel you may be a match you can email Kipley at ffkip01@aol.com


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About the Author
Annie Schroeder headshot

Annie Schroeder joined the 10 News team as a reporter in June 2020 and is no stranger to Southwest Virginia.