Blake

“Hi, I’m Blake! What’s your name?” Not shy in the least, Blake is a spirited little boy who isn’t afraid to tell you all about his favorite things. Blake’s favorite things are Muppet Babies, music, and like many St. Louis kids, the St. Louis Cardinals.

Blake’s journey at our member hospital, SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital, began at two days old when he went into kidney failure. During Blake’s first year of life, he spent 135 days in the hospital for dialysis treatments, multiple surgeries and various therapy sessions.

On January 18, 2016, Blake went through an eight-hour kidney transplant to save his life. He went from being on dialysis 13-24 hours every day, having a feeding tube for nutrition and being completely lethargic and immobile to being a thriving happy little boy thanks to his living-donor, Laurie.

Today, Blake is in school and loves making new friends. He hasn’t met a stranger that isn’t his instant friend. He loves to rock out on his guitar and drums, eat ice cream and play.

How CMN-STL Funds Help Blake

CMN-STL helps fund the Footprints Program. The Footprints Program is dedicated to improving the quality of life for children living with complex medical illnesses by providing comfort, advocacy and support to help families thrive.

January 2023 Update:

Blake turned 8 in November of 2022 and on January 18th, 2023 he will celebrate his 7 year transplant anniversary with his kidney donor, Laurie. Blake is a social little boy who loves music, meeting new people, traveling and the St. Louis Cardinals. In addition to a kidney transplant, Blake also has two rare genetic syndromes. School is challenging for Blake but he absolutely loves it and has a great group of teachers and therapists helping him along the way. He is a regular at Cardinal Glennon with many specialists but thankfully his visits have mainly been for routine checkups lately. Blake is proud to be a Miracle Kid and is hoping for a happy and healthy new year.