The Latest on Harry

A few weeks ago, Harry had an emergency related to his ongoing health issues that caused a minor shutdown in BestGrips production. While I certainly could've stayed in the shop, I made the decision to stay in the hospital with him. I hate making you wait more than a day on your orders, so it's time to disclose a story that's been significant behind the scenes of BestGrips for the last few years.

Harry, my father and the other half of the BestGrips dynamic duo, is an integral part to what happens here at HQ. While an explosion in growth has kept us on our toes when it comes to orders and delays, a less exciting reason has caused us difficulty with managing our growth and your demand. While only a few BestGrips patrons and fans are aware of the reason, it's time everyone knows. 

Just a few days before Christmas 2014, Harry fell seriously ill and spent the remainder of 2014 and a few days of 2015 in the hospital. The reason? Kidney failure. This was completely unexpected and the consequences have been life altering.

For patients with kidney failure, dialysis is the literal life blood that keeps you living. When your kidney's fail, your body has no way of filtering toxins from the blood. In 2014, when Harry was admitted, his blood toxicity was high enough to cause death. It was a miracle he even made it in the door. 

Today, and for the last two and half years, Harry has received dialysis for 3-4 hours a day, 3 days a week, 52 weeks a year. It's excruciatingly painful and 100% necessary for him to stay alive. Dialysis performs the filtering functions the kidneys naturally provide. Unfortunately, there are no vacations from dialysis. If he misses 2-3 treatments, his time is up. 

While dialysis is an answer to kidney failure, it's not a perfect solution. Harry has good days and bad. However, the humiliating experience hasn't broken his unyielding spirit. 

There is a silver lining for Harry and other dialysis patients, though, with the national Kidney Transplant List. Luckily, the human body is blessed with an extra kidney. Through a kidney transplant, a patient can return to somewhat normal life, albeit with a stricter diet and a weakened immune system. The lack of dialysis, however, is a welcomed absence from day to day life. 

The waitlist for a random kidney is long, a few years longer than Harry's life expectancy on dialysis, and ever increasing. Unfortunately, medical history prevents both myself, and Harry's wife, Susan, from donating. Nonetheless, we continue to have faith that our prayers will be answered and Harry will receive a kidney donation before time runs out. 

Harry's unyielding spirit has become an incredible motivator in my personal life and for BestGrips. His tenacity and courage in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds is an inspiration to live life to the fullest and to push BestGrips even further. As Harry says, "life is what you make it." 

If your order is taking longer than you'd like, or we haven't returned your email quick enough, I'm deeply sorry. The order will be fulfilled and your inquiry resolved asap. 

For more information about becoming a living donor, visit the United Network for Organ Sharing. For more information about becoming an organ donor (living or upon death), visit the Organ Donor Registry.