Siblings are in the race for life

More than 1,300 people in Northeast Ohio are awaiting organ transplants.
By MARALINE KUBIK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Most Soap Box Derby drivers are racing this weekend for a chance to compete in the national derby in Akron. Stephen and Johanna Kuebler of Berlin Center are racing for life.
Their goal, aside from winning their races, is to promote the need for donor organs and to make people aware that help is available for those who need organ transplants.
"I wouldn't have my brother today if he hadn't been given a second chance at life," Stephen, 11, said.
Liver transplant
Stephen and Johanna's 17-year-old brother, Matthew, had a liver transplant at age 14, three years after being diagnosed with a life-threatening disease.
According to their mother, Linda Kuebler, Matthew received his transplant in the nick of time: Six months earlier doctors had predicted he would live three to six months.
LifeBanc, a nonprofit organization that coordinates the recovery and transplant of donor organs in Northeast Ohio, sponsored Stephen in the Soap Box Derby.
Although Matthew has already received his transplant, the Kueblers know how close they came to losing him. They also know how many people die awaiting organ transplants because not enough donor organs are available.
More than 1,300 people in Northeast Ohio are awaiting transplants. Last year, donor organs became available for 390 people on that list, according to LifeBanc.
List is growing
The list is growing longer every day. Nationwide, 17 patients die each day waiting for donor organs, said Monica Heath, LifeBanc's media and public affairs coordinator. An additional 114 patients are added to the list of those waiting for organs every day, she said.
Stephen said he hopes his white superstock racer emblazoned with LifeBanc's bright green logo will help make more people aware of the need for donors and prompt them to sign donor cards.
"We've always wanted to make people more aware of the need for organ donation, and this was one more way to support it, by racing for life," Linda Kuebler said.
Educating public
Educating the public about organ donation is a family affair for the Kueblers. Matthew has entered projects about organ donation in a science fair and participated in the "Run for Your Life" fun walk sponsored by LifeBanc. His 15-year-old sister Lindsay, last year's superstock winner in the Youngstown Soap Box Derby, has given presentations at school. Stephen is racing for life and has talked with classmates and teachers about his brother's transplant. And Johanna, 9, has talked with her friends.
Organ and tissue donation are not the only causes the Kueblers support.
Last year the S.M.I.L.E. Network, a support group for cancer patients at the Blood & amp; Cancer Center Inc., Canfield, sponsored Lindsay in the Soap Box Derby. "It was a good way to let people know that when they are having a tough time there are others they can get support from," Linda Kuebler said. Eye Care Associates Inc., with offices in Boardman and Youngstown, is Johanna's sponsor.
kubik@vindy.com