Fast, fit and living life to the fullest, Bobby Ford was on the cusp of his boyhood dream of playing professional running back or receiver in the Canadian Football League. A contender at the Hamilton Tiger Cats training camp, Bobby never got the chance to score in the professional leagues. Unbeknownst to him his body was gradually growing sluggish and mysteriously his weight was on the upswing. He lived a healthy lifestyle. No big deal. He chalked it up to simply getting older.

At the young age of 27, Bobby hit the wall. “My life changed in a heart beat. I was on the phone talking to my oldest daughter and all of a sudden it hit me. I started vomiting violently. I was incoherent. I don’t remember much else until I awoke in the intensive care unit (ICU) smothered with machines that were being used to keep me alive. Unbelievable, recollects the personable father of four young children. Bobby had gone into kidney failure. No prior warning. No prior history of kidney disease. Dialysis machines were feverishly working to keep his blood cleansed and his body functioning.

Bobby spent 10 days in intensive care and when he was stable enough to come out he braced for his future. “I had to learn to take things day by day. For six straight years every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I’d spend five hours a day on dialysis. I’d monitor everything I ate and everything I drank. No alcohol, no salt and no compromising. I’d crave a big, cold glass of water but I knew I’d pay bad if I drank it,” said Bobby. “There were times when I would think this is it for the rest of my life. It was tough. I’d have a bad day but then I’d see my kids and I’d get through it.”

In October 2000, with his younger sister as the donor, Bobby received his first of two kidney transplants. His new lease on life lasted until 2004 when his body rejected the transplant and he resumed dialysis treatment for a second time.

For the 18 months that followed with courage and strength Bobby resumed his dialysis routine. “You do what you have to do. It sounds strange but I felt fortunate.” Bobby explains he would be asked to talk to teenage diabetics as a role model and encourage them to take care of themselves.

In November 2004, Bobby underwent his second kidney transplant with his 57-year-old mom as donor. “My mom is my greatest fan.”

For now, Bobby Ford takes it one day at a time. He does as much as he can at his part-time job as a groundskeeper at Niagara Parks Commission. He shares his joy for life as coach to a team of youngsters who play on the Niagara Falls Blue Bombers. And he makes sure he hugs his kids and tells them he loves them every day. “I appreciate life a lot more than I ever did.”