Faces of the Games

JOSEPH ARY, 7

Greenfield, TN

For most baseball-obsessed seven-year-olds, their heroes are the hitting and pitching greats. Not so for Joseph Ary. His one and only champion is his dad. Born with two damaged kidneys, Joseph underwent countless surgeries to repair them, all the time waiting for a new kidney to become available. By the time Joseph was two-and-a-half, his dad underwent testing to learn if he could become his son’s donor. In the world of matching donors to recipients, his father hit a home run. He was a perfect match. The two underwent the surgery in 2000.

Five years post transplant, Joseph catches, throws, hits and steals bases as he dreams of professional baseball stardom. During the 2004 U.S. Transplant Games, he competed in the softball throw and long jump and palled around with other kids who had transplant surgery just like him. “Joseph was so excited to go to the Games,” says Alicia, Joseph’s mom. “The part he loved the most was meeting people from all over the county.”

Since the last Games, Joseph has been attending school, playing with his five siblings and learning to do wheelies on his bike. Last August, he celebrated his 5 year transplant anniversary and is looking forward to competing in the 2006 National Kidney Foundation Transplant Games this June in Louisville.

“Every day he explores and learns something new,” says his mother. “But none of it would be possible if it wasn’t for his dad – his hero.”