Rosalyn and Jim Butterfield are part of the Kamloops kidney community, which is why a few of us gathered at McArthur Island on Sunday afternoon.
Their son, Mike, who lives on the Lower Mainland of B.C., has polycystic kidney disease (PKD) and recently started dialysis. Yes, he needs a kidney transplant. He is on the transplant list and fingers are crossed that his time will come soon.
PKD is a mostly hereditary disease, according to the Mayo Clinic, “in which clusters of cysts develop primarily within your kidneys, causing your kidneys to enlarge and lose function over time. . . . It’s not uncommon for people to have (PKD) for years without knowing it.”
Also from the Mayo Clinic: “Sometimes a genetic mutation occurs on its own (spontaneous), so that neither parent has a copy of the mutated gene.”
The PKD Foundation of Canada reports that PKD “is one of the most common life-threatening diseases, affecting approximately one in 400 to one in 1,000. It does not skip a generation. There is usually a family history of the disease and parents . . . have a 50 per cent chance of passing the disease on to each of their children.
PKD “is passed from one generation to the next by an affected parent. . . . Scientists have also discovered that approximately 10 to 20 percent of the PKD patient community became affected through spontaneous mutation.”
According to Rosalyn, her family falls into that latter category.
Rosalyn and Jim showed up three or four years ago for a gathering of the Kamloops Kidney Support Group. Their son had been diagnosed with KPD and hey had a whole lot of questions that we tried to answer as best we could. Since then, they have continued to join our sessions when possible.
On Sunday, then, a group of family and friends took part in a ‘Team Hike4Mike.’ We weren’t trying to raise money or anything like that. It was simply a show of support for the Butterfields, who continue to try and raise the profile of PKD,
Meanwhile, Ferris Backmeyer, 5, and her mother, Lindsey, of Kamloops arrived in Toronto late Saturday.
They are in for a busy couple of days as Ferris, who was diagnosed with kidney disease shortly after birth, is to be introduced to the staff at the Hospital for Sick Children.
Lindsey posted on Facebook that Ferris will have Monday appointments from 8 a.m. through 3:30 p.m., and then be involved in “sleep study” that night.
“She leaves that to immediately start another full day off appointments (on Tuesday),” Lindsey posted on Facebook. “Wednesday is full, too, and we go from the hospital to the airport. Home midnight Wednesday.”
You may recall that Ferris underwent a transplant in Vancouver in March 2021. However, a kidney that was transplanted one afternoon was removed that night because of developing issues with it.
The Backmeyers have held out hope since then that another kidney could be found for transplant, but that hasn’t happened. The plan now is for a different medical team to get an up-close look at Ferris with the hope that new eyes may see new opportunities.
As Lindsey wrote on Saturday after arriving in Toronto: “Ferris really enjoyed the day today. She travelled amazingly well. I’m really proud of her. This is going to be an adventure for all of us. Short. Whirlwind. Hopefully life changing. The journey to get here is just the beginning!”
Zach Tremblay of Robson, B.C., who also is awaiting a kidney transplant, was in Vancouver for the weekend in his role as the Children’s Organ Transplant Society’s 2022 Ambassador. He helped the society play host to its annual Classic Golf Tournament.
When at home in Robson, Zach, 19, makes the drive to Trail three times a week in order to undergo dialysis. Born with renal hypoplasia-dysplasia, he underwent a transplant on June 1, 2017. Unfortunately, there was a problem and the transplanted organ had to be removed.
His mother, Jana, told Gord McIntyre of Postmedia: “What should have been a fairly routine four-hour surgery lasted about eight hours. They finally came and found my husband and me to tell us that a technical error had been made during the surgery and it cut off the blood flow to the kidney.”
McIntyre added: “Two more surgeries were performed overnight trying to save the kidney. When a test the next morning showed the kidney was not functioning, Zach required a fourth operation within 24 hours to remove the failed organ.”
Now we are heading to the end of 2022 and Zach continues to wait for another chance.
If you are interested in being a living kidney donor, more information is available here:
Living Kidney Donor Program
St. Paul’s Hospital
6A Providence Building
1081 Burrard Street
Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6
Tel: 604-806-9027
Toll free: 1-877-922-9822
Fax: 604-806-9873
Email: donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca
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Vancouver General Hospital Living Donor Program – Kidney
Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre
Level 5, 2775 Laurel Street
Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9
604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182
kidneydonornurse@vch.ca
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Or, for more information, visit right here.
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same people were even more surprised to find out that Lindgren, a fourth-round selection of the Buffalo Sabres in the NHL’s 2022 draft, had asked out of Kamloops. . . . So what happened? . . . “It was the best thing for me for personal reasons and I’m just excited for this new opportunity,” Lindgren told Greg Meachem of 
Winnipeg Blue Bombers in Regina on Sunday. . . . With the game tied 17-17 in the fourth quarter, and neither team having yet scored in the second half, the Roughriders had moved into field goal range when a schmozzle developed at the Saskatchewan bench. WR Duke Williams of the Roughriders, not dressed because of an ankle injury, was flagged for yapping with fewer than 11 minutes to play. Saskatchewan took a holding penalty on the next play and, because the penalty had pushed them out of field goal ranger, was forced to punt.
wondered who it might be. Bob Hope? Aaron Spelling? Bill Cosby? A moment later, he almost crashed into a curbside tree.
in Herning, Denmark, on Sunday to understand. . . . Yes, that was Scott Smith, the president and CEO of Hockey Canada, handing out the gold medals to the Canadian team after its 2-1 victory over the U.S., in the process allowing controversy to creep into what should have been a time that belonged strictly to the winners. . . . The arrogance, the tone deafness . . . call it whatever you want . . . it was off the charts. . . . What it wasn’t was surprising. . . . If you haven’t realized it before, you should be aware by now that the Hockey Canada pooh-bahs seem to be planning to wait this out while the whole mess gets swept (shovelled?) under the carpet and disappears from the public mind. . . . At the end of the day, it’s all about the power and the accompanying perks. Once your nose is in the trough, it’s awfully hard to walk away on a voluntary basis. Obviously, the time has come for someone — politicians? sponsors? — to push harder.
Unfiltered tried to answer the question: “Why?” . . . Here’s what he wrote: “Because it’s a hockey thing and it involves hockey people, a group that, generally speaking, loves to wear its status as an outlier like a badge of honour. It’s such an insular, tribal group and it believes the problems that plague the game can only be solved by people who are deeply involved in it, people who are well-versed in the supposed complex and unique nuances involved in a game where players chase a black disc around the ice. Even if those are the same people who cause the problems in the first place.”
leading scorer last season, from the Saskatoon Blades for F Conner Roulette, 19, and a third-round pick in the WHL’s 2026 draft. . . . Crnkovic, a first-round pick by the Blades in the WHL’s 2017 draft, had 94 points, including 39 goals, in 68 games last season. In 210 games over four-plus seasons with Saskatoon, he put up 81 goals and 140 assists. He is from Chestermere, Alta. . . . Seattle now has two 20-year-olds on its roster, the other being F Jared Davidson, who finished last season with 42 goals and 47 assists in 64 games. . . . Seattle selected Roulette, who is from Winnipeg, in the second 
round of the WHL’s 2018 draft. In 131 games with the Thunderbirds, he had 117 points, including 49 goals. Last season, he put up 24 goals and 42 assists in 65 games. He added 18 points, five of them goals, in 25 playoff games as Seattle reached the WHL final. . . . The Dallas Stars picked Roulette in the fourth round of the NHL’s 2021 draft. . . . The Blades, who open training camp on Thursday, have yet to post a training camp roster on their website. But I believe they now have two 20-year-olds with them — F Josh Pillar and D Aidan De La Gorgendiere. Moving Crnkovic, then, would perhaps indicate that another deal/acquisition is imminent.
have him on the sideline. . . . “Chase underwent testing this summer and discovered a congenital defect to his lower body,” Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ owner, president and general manager, said in a news release. “At this time, Chase has decided he will not attend training camp or be a part of the Rebels’ roster to start the season, and we support him as he navigates through the process.” . . . In 41 regular-season games, 35 of them last season, the Swift Current native was 24-11-3, 2.62, .904. . . . Last season, Coward was 22-10-2, 2.51, .906. . . . As WHL observer Alan Caldwell tweeted: “This leaves the Rebels with no experienced goaltenders since they traded Coward’s 21-22 batterymate Connor Ungar to Moose Jaw in the spring.” . . . Perhaps the Rebels would be interested in one of two veteran OHL goaltenders, both of them 20 years of age, who have been waived. Tucker Tynan was dropped by the Soo Grehyounds, while the Peterborough Petes have dropped Tye Austin. . . . G Kyle Kelsey, 18, who was acquired from the Warriors in the Ungar deal, may get a look. However, the Rebels, who open camp on Thursday, have yet to post a training camp roster.
for D Kyle Masters, 19, and a lottery-protected first-round selection in the 2025 WHL draft. . . . Lindgren, the son of former NHL F Mats Lindgren, had asked for a trade after being a fourth-round pick by the Buffalo Sabres in the NHL’s 2022 draft. . . . The Blazers, the host team for the 2023 Memorial Cup tournament, had selected Lindgren, a North Vancouver native, with the seventh pick of the first round in the WHL’s 2019 draft. He had five goals and 39 assists in 68 regular-season games in 2021-22, then added seven assists in 17 playoff games. . . . 
sports journalism career that began at the Brandon Sun.
games on Sept 4. On Friday, however, the Thunderbirds reversed field, tweeting that “training camp begins Aug. 31 and starting Thursday (Sept. 1) it is open to the public.” . . . Meanwhile, Sarah Brusig of 
have F Justin Robidas, 19, the captain of the Val-d’Or Foreurs, move to the Quebec Remparts for a package that will include G Mathys Fernandez, 17, and a number of draft picks. The intriguing part is that, as Mikael Lalancette of Le Soleil reported, the transaction will “be announced during the holiday season.” That would be “holiday” as in Christmas. . . . Yes, because it’s the Q. . . . BTW, Robidas’ father, Stéphane, is a former NHLer who now is an assistant coach with the Montreal Canadiens.
coach on Thursday, taking over from Babcock, who has moved into a mentorship role with the Huskies. . . . According to Kevin Mitchell of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Babcock will “serve as a mentor and will also work on program recruiting and fundraising.” . . . Babcock worked as a volunteer head coach last season and was expected to coach one more season before stepping aside. . . . The NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs still owe him for one more season after having fired him on Nov. 20, 2019, with three-plus years remaining on an eight-year, $50-million deal. . . . Babcock’s son, Mike Jr., will remain on the Huskies’ staff as an assistant coach. . . . Cote, 41, a former WHL player from Swift Current, has been on the coaching staffs of the Prince Albert Raiders (2016-17) and Swift Current Broncos (2018-21). . . . Cote played five season (1997-2002) with the Spokane Chiefs and was the team captain for the last two of those seasons while Babcock was the head coach there. . . . The Huskies were 13-7 under Babcock last season, then lost a best-of-three first-round series, 2-1, to the Calgary Dinos.
CFL season, but he knows that might be asking too much. He is to have surgery to repair the Lisfranc injury he suffered to his right foot in a 28-10 victory over the host Saskatchewan Roughriders on Aug. 19. . . . Interestingly, QB Matt Corral of the Carolina Panthers suffered the same injury on the same night and the NFL team has said he won’t play this season. . . . And then Chet Holmgren, a 7-footer who was the No. 2 selection in the NBA’s 2022 draft, suffered a Lisfranc injury to his right foot on Saturday in Seattle and the Oklahoma City Thunder has said he will miss the 2022-23 season. . . . Hands up if you had heard of Lisfranc injuries before Aug. 19.
TAKING NOTE 