Howard Lulua of Nemiah Valley is in urgent need of a kidney transplant as his kidney is no longer functioning.
Friends, family and community members are reaching out on Facebook, hoping someone will step up, find they are a match and donate their kidney to Lulua. He is currently in hospital where excess fluids are being drained from him throughout the day both manually and with a dialysis machine.
Lulua grew up in Nemiah Valley and spent much of his time chasing, catching, racing and training horses.
Tl’etinqox (Anaham) Chief Joe Alphonse told Black Press Media Lulua is one of the few remaining horse trainers in the Tŝilhqot’in Nation, which encompasses six communities including Tl’etinqox and Xeni Gwet’in.
Lulua was diagnosed with stage five chronic kidney disease in February 2022, but when he first got the news, he continued to train horses up until the point he could no longer do it. He has a teenage daughter who also rides horses and is learning to train them.
Chief Alphonse said Lulua is a role model for many of the Tŝilhqot’in Nation.
“One kidney is all you need to help him live a normal life,” he said, adding if he had been a match he would have given his kidney to Lulua, but that wasn't the case.
Xeni Gwet’in Chief Roger William told Black Press Media Lulua has trained many of the horses which community members have raced with, including William’s own horse. The chief said Lulua’s contributions are important to the Xeni Gwet’in community and the Tŝilhqot’in Nation.
“Horses are a big part of our society...it’s part of who we are,” Chief William said. The Xeni Gwet’in community is located in Nemiah Valley, about 200 kilometres west of Williams Lake.
Lulua has been crowned King of the Hill as the overall winner in a three-part Cariboo mountain race series.
He was also featured in the 2020 docuseries The Wild Ones which was filmed in and around Nemiah Valley and demonstrates the relationship between the Tŝilhqot'in people and Qayus Naghlhiny (wild horses).
Chief William said that he, along with the Xeni Gwet’in and Tŝilhqot’in people, are crossing their fingers hoping there is someone out there who is a match and can donate their kidney to Lulua.
The process to donate a kidney begins by reaching out to Vancouver General Hospital at 1-604-875-5182, 1-855-875-5182 or at kidneydonornurse@vch.ca. You can also contact St. Paul's Hospital at 604-806-9027, 1-877-922-9822 or donornurse@providencehealth.bc.ca.
There is a reimbursement program for living donors which you can learn more about on the Kidney Foundation website. Other ways you can help are by sharing this information and getting the word out so people are encouraged to see if they are a match.
