Patient stories

Kidney care comes full circle

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Jacee Numbrado, dialysis tech at the Cogen Center in Bremerton.

At the young age of 18, while living in the Philippines, Jacee Numbrado was diagnosed with glomerular nephritis, resulting in end-stage kidney disease. He had been experiencing gouty arthritis symptoms for a week when he awoke one night with such intense pain, he was taken to the hospital where lab studies revealed a high creatinine level. He was given the choice of treating his condition with medication or starting dialysis. Jacee opted for medication which sadly did not help— he ended up going on dialysis two times a week while living in the Philippines.

Jacee and his family moved to the United States in 2019; he started dialysis at Olympic Peninsula Kidney Center (now Puget Sound Kidney Centers-Cogen Bremerton) that June. Soon after, with the support of clinic staff—who Jacee says “were always positive, made him feel comfortable and hopeful”—Jacee decided to pursue a kidney transplant.

In August 2021, Jacee received a kidney transplant at Virginia Mason. He did well during his weeklong stay in the hospital and was then released for observation at home for a month.

In July 2022, Jacee was hired as a dialysis technician at Puget Sound Kidney Centers-Cogen Bremerton. He is now helping provide care where he himself received care—a true full circle. Jacee wants to bring back what he received as a patient—hope and positivity.

“Every day is a new day and the staff at PSKC made this possible for me,” he says, “so I hope to do the same for patients I care for.”

Helping fellow patients live their best lives

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On any given day, you might see Bob Crabtree teaching a class on how to make low-sodium sourdough bread as part of our CKD education program, leading an online support group for kidney patients, or presiding over a PSKC Foundation Board meeting to discuss ways to raise funds for PSKC and our patients. Recently retired from a 38- year career as a mechanic, Bob works tirelessly for people with kidney disease.

“Having a deadly chronic disease is terrifying to think about, let alone live,” he says. “If I had to deal with this alone, I’m not sure my outcome would have been as positive as it has.”

Diagnosed with polycystic kidneys as a child, Bob learned early on that his kidneys would likely fail in the future.“When you’re told at age 12 that you won’t live to see 50, you don’t take anything for granted.”

For Bob, education, preparation and the support of his family and friends were key in helping him manage his kidney disease, dialysis and eventual transplant. “My wife, Robin, along with my father and mother were very supportive. I was lucky to have a support system in place.”

Bob fondly remembers the support he received from a fellow patient during his first dialysis treatment—a simple act of kindness when he needed it most that ignited his lifelong desire to help other kidney patients. When asked why he works so hard, Bob says, “I’m happy to pay forward the gifts of kindness that have been given to me.”

Daniel and Sylvia’s story

Patient stories -

Our patients and their families are our reason for being, and each of them has a story of their own that testifies to the value of our mission in individual lives. Here is the story of one couple’s experience of the PSKC community.

Both born in Austin, Texas, Daniel and Sylvia have a nearly lifelong relationship. In fact, Sylvia vividly remembers the first time she met Daniel.

“I walked into the church talent show holding my mother’s hand and saw this young boy up on stage singing and kicking up his feet dancing to a Righteous Brothers’ song. I just couldn’t stop looking at him.”

She was just five years old.

Daniel and Sylvia eventually found themselves in the same youth group where they began dating.

“I knew right away I wanted to marry her and I put a ring on lay away for two years,” says Daniel.

They married in 1974 and enjoy living in the Pacific Northwest near their daughters and grandchildren.

As a diabetic, when Daniel learned his kidneys were declining and that he would soon be in stage five renal failure, he admits, “I didn’t want to do dialysis. I was going to let myself go,” but he credits his prayer group for encouraging him to fight on. Since then, Daniel has dialyzed many places, but he feels there’s something special about Puget Sound Kidney Centers.

“I’m comfortable at home because no one’s going to care for you like your family, but I have to say I’ve come to feel the same about here. I wish everyone had the level of care that you get at Puget Sound Kidney Centers.”

Sylvia adds, “We have come to feel safe here. To be able to live longer…and be stronger. Had we not had access to dialysis, what would have happened? Dialysis is a miracle.”

Thank you, Daniel and Sylvia, for sharing your story! Hear from more kidney patients about their experiences living with kidney disease. Follow #MyKidneyStory on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

From kids to seniors, how one couple shows compassion for the community

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While working at Boeing, Tom and Christy Lee contributed to the Boeing Employee Community Fund, a fund that supports a wide variety of charitable causes in the community. Through this, the Lees saw the impact charitable giving can make in helping people in need. Thus, when they retired, they continued donating to a number of causes, including the Homage Senior Services’ Meals on Wheels program, the Marysville Community Food Bank and an international ministry — of which Tom says, “We buy goats for the ladies in Africa.”

Still, Tom and Christy felt they could do more and came up with the idea of paying off the lunch debts of students at Kellogg Marsh Elementary School, the school their son attended as a child. When they went to the district office to inquire, however, they were surprised to find that the debt for that school was only $259. They then asked how much it would cost to pay off the lunch debt for the whole Marysville School District and were told the total debt was $5,495 for 262 kids in 10 schools. Tom and Christy decided to donate that amount, and felt good knowing that the debt was gone for these kids. Thanks to the Lee’s initiative and generosity, families in the district who were struggling to pay off their children’s lunch debt would have one less worry.

A few years ago, Tom learned that his kidneys were failing and he would need to start dialysis. He fell ill just as he and Christy were getting ready to depart on a long-awaited dream trip to Hawaii. Instead of heading away, they needed to focus on getting Tom healthy enough to qualify for a transplant. Today, Tom is still dialyzing but feeling better and determined to have that great vacation. Meanwhile, he and Christy continue to make a difference in the community by helping others in need.

“I just love the way it makes me feel,” Tom says about donating. “It feels so good and we’re fortunate to be able to help.”

Thank you, Tom and Christy, for the incredible support you have shown this community!

From colony to community: how a former beekeeper keeps buzzing

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For more than 40 years, Pedro Lopez — who dialyzes at our Everett center — was an apiarist, otherwise known as a beekeeper. He maintained thousands of hives in tiny Reedley, California, a place known as “The World’s Fruit Basket,” a nod to the town’s fruit cultivation.

“I loved everything about working with the bees,” says Pedro. “I learned something new every day; the bees were excellent teachers.”

Today, Pedro’s nephews Raul and Rafael own and manage his farm, Reynaga’s Bees, and they produce hundreds of pounds of honey every year. Altogether, they maintain over 7,000 hives. With approximately 4,000 bees per hive, that means they’ve got a whopping 28 million bees at work. And boy do they work! The bees can produce, on average, 100 pounds of honey per hive, per year. And that gold equates to a lot of green: a 200-gallon barrel of honey is sold for about $1,800. There is no wealth without risk, though, as Pedro remembers being stung over 200 times on one particular day!

Reynaga’s Bees harvest their honey twice per year, usually in May and August. During the winter, they maintain the hives and routinely feed the bees corn syrup.


During the pollinating season, bees work from sunrise to sundown, unless it’s raining or very cold, and only live for 40 days. To keep the hive “alive,” the queen bee lays approximately 500 eggs per day. The male drone bee who acts as the father is selected from more than 100 drones — some dating pool! It takes 21 days for the egg to grow into the larvae stage, and then “nurse” bees feed and maintain the young with special food until they are ready to go to work.

When bees head out and find the flowers with pollen and nectar that they need to make honey, they report back to the hive and do a special dance to tell other bees the exact location of the specific flower patch they found.

Once the bees collect the nectar and pollen, they are ready to store it in cells within the hive. When the hives are full, bees create a wind with their wings that evaporates all of the water, leaving behind the delicious honey.

These days, Pedro stays busy walking the neighborhood and talking to people about bees.

“One of my transit drivers wants to start keeping bees, and I’ve offered to help teach him and get him started.”

He visits his family in Reedley several times a year and is all set to go again in March, having just celebrated his 90th birthday and 13 years on dialysis!

Isn’t that just bee-utiful!

April 22 is Earth Day and, just like Pedro, this year’s campaign is focused on bringing back the bees! Bees are essential pollinators and unfortunately, the world’s population of bees is declining. One simple way to attract more bees is to plant wildflowers. Visit www.earthday.org/campaigns to read more about bringing back the bees and other campaigns of focus this year.

The road to transplant: Armando’s journey

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Armando’s early days of dialysis.

In 2007, 17-year-old Armando Gonzalez Valadez was tired, didn’t have much energy and always felt sick.

Soon after, Armando was diagnosed with kidney failure and started dialysis in the Mount Vernon area. After about six months, he moved to Lynnwood and became a Puget Sound Kidney Centers patient in Mountlake Terrace. His idol, Superman, was proudly displayed on t-shirts he wore to treatment.

Armando’s determination and strong will was evident with him working two— sometimes three—jobs to make ends meet. In 2011, Armando began doing home dialysis treatments five nights per week, which allowed him the ability to juggle work during the day. He also began helping the Mountlake Terrace social workers run a monthly support group that provides education to only Spanish-speaking patients.

Armando after his kidney transplant.

Not content at just working and living in this country, Armando was passionate about becoming a U.S. citizen. All his hard work and determination paid off in March of 2014 when he finally obtained his citizenship. Then, on December 27 of the same year, he received “the call.” It was his turn for a transplant.

The operation was successful and Armando received what he describes as “The best Christmas present, ever!”

For Armando, life after transplant has only gotten better. Recently, he was promoted to manager of Interstate Batteries, a company that celebrates his transplant anniversary every year with a cake. He has also just purchased his first home and got married.

Armando has shown that not only can Superman “jump tall buildings in a single bound,” he can beat kidney failure too. Like Armando says, “You have to fight through some bad days to earn the best days of your life.”

Interested in learning more about kidney transplant? Read more about this treatment option here.

Survive and thrive with Tena!

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Happy World Kidney Day! Whether you’ve just been diagnosed with chronic kidney disease, have been on dialysis for some time or are waiting for a transplant, there are a number of ways to prolong the life of your kidneys and improve your overall health.

Two years ago, Tena saw a brochure at her nephrologist’s office for PSKC’s Survive and Thrive with Chronic Kidney Disease program, a free community class hosted by PSKC year round. The goal of the program is to teach people with early kidney problems about making successful lifestyle changes. Subjects covered include healthy eating, exercise, blood pressure management, coping with kidney disease and treatment options. In class, participants meet with a doctor, physician assistant, social worker, dietitians and patient mentors.

Tena H. learned more about dialysis through our Survive and Thrive program.

Tena was newly diagnosed with stage three CKD and had a lot of questions and concerns about living a healthy, happy life. After attending the first class, Tena started to feel that “this disease is not a death sentence and there’s a lot of hope.” Specifically, Tena found hope and support hearing from members of the patient organization, The Road Back to Life. “They really make you listen and know you’re not alone.”

After completing the classes, Tena said she learned many new skills to promote her health or, as she calls it, develop a “new normal.” She learned that the nutrition piece and social work piece are just as important as the nephrology visits. She also learned how to appropriately read food labels, cook with different herbs and spices, and plan ahead to carry out a fulfilled life. Tena’s support network expanded as well. She said she walked away from the class feeling that “when you share, you can connect.”

Now Tena is taking what she learned in class and bringing it to her community. Most recently she connected with PSKC social workers to talk with her peers about advance care planning. Thank you, Tena, for sharing your story and helping us ignite new conversations about health and wellness!

Learn more about our free classes at www.pskc.net/classes.

Lance and Marni: a caregiving story

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Lance and Marni met 45 years ago in New Mexico, raised two daughters and have lived in Arlington for the past 20 years. About three years ago, they received some unexpected news. Marni was told that her kidneys were failing and she should prepare for dialysis. Just six months later, they found themselves checking in for dialysis treatment at PSKC Smokey Point.

Marni, on dialysis at PSKC Smokey Point, with husband Lance.

Lance, retired, studied the dialysis process. Since day one, he has documented every one of Marni’s treatments — her blood pressures, medications taken, blood sugar readings and more. Mostly, Lance looks for trends so they can catch it if something is amiss. He is happy to be Marni’s “medical advocate” and so much more by doing all the cooking, cleaning and housework as well.

Marni stays busy outside of dialysis, teaching tole painting classes out of their home every Thursday night. Supplies, including wood characters that Lance builds, are included in the cost of the class.

There are many ways to adjust to dialysis, and together Marni and Lance have figured out a way that works best for them. By writing it all down, Lance provides helpful information to get the best care for Marni and engages himself in a positive way. Marni continues to spread her passion for art even while tackling dialysis and other health challenges. A strong and solid pair, Lance and Marni are an inspiration to all.

Happy strumming! In between dialysis treatments, Ukulele Mike shares his music around the world

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When a young Michael Lynch found a dusty ukulele that his sister brought back from Hawaii years earlier and began to teach himself, little did he know what a life-changing moment that was to become. Ukulele Mike has now taught the instrument to thousands of people around the globe.

Michael Lynch, known around the world as Ukulele Mike.

As a teacher in the Seattle school district and local private schools, Mike brought the magic of the ukulele to countless school-age children throughout his career. Thanks to his online instruction videos, Mike also has an international following. He now receives videos back from accomplished students in Korea, Japan, New Zealand and around Southeast Asia. They all respond back with different variations of his catchphrase “happy strumming,” which is how he ends each lesson.

Mike started dialysis almost two years ago, but he is still able to write, produce and share his music around the world. He admits his most productive days are his off days, but he’s never allowed his illness to stop him. He’s currently planning a second ukulele cruise, where he and his wife, Collene, teach ukulele to passengers for four or five days at sea, on their way from California to Hawaii. Mike also currently works with musical instrument builder Oscar Schmidt Co., and has developed the Mike Lynch Tenor Ukulele, complete with his signature on the headstock and available for purchase online.

Visit www.allthingsukulele.com to learn more about Ukulele Mike.

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