Snohomish dad’s kidney saves son’s life

SNOHOMISH — Tim and Paige Buurstra are looking forward to a future with their 22-month-old son after two years of feeling like an interesting science project for doctors.

Doctors told the Snohomish couple they did not expect the toddler to survive kidney disease.

Isaac Buurstra was released Friday from Children’s Hospital in Seattle after undergoing a kidney transplant in late November. The toddler received the life-saving organ from his father. For almost two years the boy had survived by being hooked to a dialysis machine at least 12 hours a day.

Tim Buurstra, a Boeing engineer, and Paige Buurstra, a Snohomish attorney, first learned of their son’s renal problems 18 weeks into the pregnancy. They didn’t face similar problems when their daughter, Maddy, 4, was born.

“It was horrible,” Paige Buurstra said. “It’s hard to even put words to when somebody tells you your child’s going to die.”

After hearing she may only have a few hours with her son alive if she made it through pregnancy, some days she almost wished he would never be born, Paige Buurstra, 35, said.

“It’s going to be worse if I have two months than if he dies in utero,” she said. “People don’t really say that out loud.”

Still, the couple remained hopeful and Isaac was born Feb. 6, 2012.

“It was a very tense moment when they pulled him out,” Tim Buurstra, also 35, said. “It was this question of if he was going to scream, which means he’s breathing.”

Relief came when Isaac began to cry a few moments after birth. But that just marked the beginning of his struggle to survive.

“No parent regrets having their child, no matter how difficult it gets,” Paige Buurstra said. “You don’t know what’s going to happen but you’ll never regret having a child and any amount of time.”

Isaac underwent three major surgeries in his first three months of life. He has landed in the hospital nine times before his second birthday.

With the success of his recent transplant surgery, Isaac finally has a chance at a relatively normal childhood.

“That was the moment I was like ahhh,” Paige Buurstra said. “It really was a miracle.”

The couple is anticipating several more hospitalizations for their son. Their hopes for his future remain limitless.

“We’re not doing this alone. That’s the amazing thing,” Paige Buurstra said. “We have a whole community standing behind us.”

People are helping raise money for the Children’s Organ Transplant Association, which helps families like the Buurstras pay for medical expenses. So far, COTA has raised $48,000 of the $75,000 goal it set with Isaac in mind.

With the transplant behind them, the Buurstras said, they plan to focus on making healthy choices for their entire family and spending more time with their daughter.

“As hard as it has been, there have been great things that have come out of this in the way we view life,” Paige Buurstra said.

“We’ve never looked back, we don’t regret a moment,” Tim Buurstra added.

Amy Nile: 425-339-3192; anile@heraldnet.com.

How to help

To support the Children’s Organ Transplant Association campaign to raise funds for families like the Buurstras:

Online: http://cotaforteamisaacb.com

Donation Drop-Off Site: Weed Patch store at 814 238th St. SE, Suite A at Country Village in Bothell

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Everett mall renderings from Brixton Capital. (Photo provided by the City of Everett)
Topgolf at the Everett Mall? Mayor’s hint still unconfirmed

After Cassie Franklin’s annual address, rumors circled about what “top” entertainment tenant could be landing at Everett Mall.

Everett
Everett man sentenced to 3 years of probation for mutilating animals

In 2022, neighbors reported Blayne Perez, 35, was shooting and torturing wildlife in north Everett.

The Washington State University Snohomish County Extension building at McCollum Park is located in an area Snohomish County is considering for the location of the Farm and Food Center on Thursday, March 28, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Year-round indoor farmers market inches closer to reality near Mill Creek

The Snohomish County Farm and Food Center received $5 million in federal funding. The county hopes to begin building in 2026.

Dorothy Crossman rides up on her bike to turn in her ballot  on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett leaders plan to ask voters for property tax increase

City officials will spend weeks hammering out details of a ballot measure, as Everett faces a $12.6 million deficit.

Starbucks employee Zach Gabelein outside of the Mill Creek location where he works on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024 in Mill Creek, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mill Creek Starbucks votes 21-1 to form union

“We obviously are kind of on the high of that win,” store bargaining delegate Zach Gabelein said.

Lynnwood police respond to a collision on highway 99 at 176 street SW. (Photo provided by Lynnwood Police)
Police: Teen in stolen car flees cops, causes crash in Lynnwood

The crash blocked traffic for over an hour at 176th Street SW. The boy, 16, was arrested on felony warrants.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.