Our story begins...

Only weeks after the first men stepped onto the surface of the moon, our own miracle was about to unfold in Anaheim, California.

Soon after he was born in 1956 it became clear to Ralph and Marlene Mason that their son Darel wasn't experiencing the same health as their many other nieces and nephews. They would later learn that neither of Darel's kidneys were functioning properly. From his doctors' first report until the summer of 1969, Darel would hope for the day when he could participate in the medical miracle of the age: an organ transplant.

This is the story of Darel's heroic struggle to survive the odds in a time when there were far fewer certainties in transplant success than we know today. For over five decades, Darel Mason continues to shatter any obstacle that would challenge his optimism. He is a fighter. He is our champion.

Since Darel's 1969 transplanted kidney began to fail in 2005, he has found himself once again on the transplant waiting list; this time at UCLA as he awaits the telephone call that every transplant patient hopes will soon come.

This is also a tribute to each child who received a kidney at Children's Hospital of Los Angeles during those early years. In addition this is a salute to every parent, grandparent, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, surgeon, doctor, nurse, friend... who shows up to care for the family who waits; who share in carrying the load that few others will ever understand.

For every gain at the expense of too many losses... we remember the unnamed heroes of our age: the children who blazed the trail for successful organ transplantation.