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Linda's Story

Linda lived with chronic illness and hospitalisation since she was just eight years old.

Can you imagine needing to stay close to a dialysis chair to undergo five hours of treatment, three days a week, every week, just to stay alive?

That’s what Linda had faced ever since she began dialysis in 2018.

For people on dialysis, they can feel trapped by a never-ending medical routine that is keeping them alive.

That’s why services like the Big Red Kidney Bus are life-changing for people like Linda. She could finally take the much-needed break that she had dreamed about for so long and still receive lifesaving dialysis.

The impact on Linda’s health is not only physical but also emotional. She mourns her loss of freedom - the ability to get in a car and take a road trip or to ‘jump on a plane’. A getaway felt like a dream that was out of reach, until she heard about the Big Red Kidney Bus.

'Travel was a great love of mine. I was always looking to go to ‘the next dot on the map’. I loved the feeling of having a new adventure every day and meeting new people.'

Linda had never heard of the Big Red Kidney Bus, and the chance for her to take a break and where she could continue life-saving dialysis treatment. So after two years of lockdown, she was so excited to book a getaway.

People with kidney disease like Linda see the Big Red Kidney Bus as a gift. A gift of new horizons, hope and possibilities. The Bus allows people living with kidney disease, and their families, to spend time away together while still accessing the crucial dialysis treatment that they need.

Sadly, Linda passed away in February 2023 after a prolonged battle with diabetes and kidney disease.

Linda was such a great advocate for the Big Red Kidney Bus and the work of Kidney Health Australia. What really stood out was Linda’s openness and positivity despite living with ongoing complications and weekly dialysis.

Her children Travis and Katrina asked us to continue to share her story with you to honour her memory and legacy by raising awareness and much needed funds for services like the Big Red Kidney Bus.