Viveca
Viveca Jones, a resident of Berkeley, California, is a Mother, Grandmother & Community Supporter for the Homeless. Her family background included kidney disease on her father’s side. She was on dialysis for 4 ½ years and also a very entertaining attendee at our Educational Presentations. She received a kidney transplant in June of 2016 and then in 2019 had a stroke, which resulted in three brain operations. She lost her eyebrows and lashes and became deaf in one ear. She said, “I was dead and know what it is to be dead. They saved my life!”
The pandemic has been devasting to many, and she’s lost 11 relatives and friends since January. “I feel blessed to be still alive and well. I eat healthy (protecting the gift of life, my kidney) and continue to work one day a week. I spread the word about kidney disease and dialysis whenever I can. I never stop talking about the dialysis treatment modalities available to all.
Viveca gives advice for you to “be your own doctor – get out and walk and ride bikes.”
“I give back to those in my community by feeding the homeless twice daily. I feel it is vital to make sure there is an adequate food supply for those who cannot get to a food pantry. I help with sandwiches, fresh salads & fresh fruit that I gather from neighbors’ fruit trees (oranges, apples) instead of letting them waste. Food from the food bank goes into boxes for those who may pass by my house to pick up for free. Helping others keeps me going.”