After being given a second chance at life, local athlete and kidney transplant recipient Michelle Hounslow is getting ready to compete at the 2024 Canadian Transplant Games taking place later this year.
The Canadian Transplant Games will be hosted at Carleton University alongside other sporting venues in Ottawa from Aug. 3 to 9. The premiere athletic event is a celebration of health and sport for transplant recipients across Canada.
Following a childhood illness, Hounslow faced kidney failure which ultimately led to her receiving a kidney transplant from a living donor. Through this, it allowed her to revisit competitive swimming from local to international levels, and now at the Canadian Transplant Games.
“I’m really excited to represent Alberta and connect with people that I had the pleasure of meeting who are family members, transplant recipients, or family members of those who have been donors, living donors, and all sots of people who are coming,” Hounslow said.
With various athletes competing in different sporting events, Hounslow said that their ages can range anywhere from 13-years-old to seniors in their 70’s.
“There’s definitely some amazing athletes going, but it’s just about the transplant community celebrating our donor, talking about organ donation, encouraging people to become donors and to register as donors if they’re able to, and just connect with people who have different stories regarding organ transplants,” she said. “But also, we have that shared organ or tissue transplant story, so I’m really looking forward to spending time in Ottawa, where I haven’t been before, as well as swimming, and seeing old friends while making new ones.”
As someone who was fortunate enough to participate in two World Transplant Games, Hounslow believes these sporting events serve as a great way to learn more about organ and tissue donation on a greater scale.
“The Canadian Transplant Games focus on the fact that we can do a lot more than we used to when we were dealing with organ failure,” she said. “And now, we’re working to maintain healthy, active lifestyles, while looking after our bodies in as many ways as we can, including the movement that comes along with our sports.”
Another benefit is allowing for discussion regarding organ and tissue donation itself, as the subject is something most people don’t really talk about. As both a recipient and donor, in the event Hounslow said she would love to give someone else another chance at life.
“Registering as an organ donor is a huge message that we like to share because there are over 4,000 Canadians waiting for various organ transplants at the moment,” she said. “So, there’s lots of conversations about that, and just honouring the gifts that we’ve been given.”
As Hounslow prepares to head off to Ontario, she would like to give a special thanks to her friend and living donor Craig Cooper, her daughter Sydney, and all her friends in the transplant community.
