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12 Days: Kidney failure forces family into hard times
The United Way is accepting donations — including, but not limited to, clothing, food, furniture, toys and money — for the families of this series. To donate, call (956) 279-9050, (956) 279-9051 or (956) 279-9052 or mail donations to P.O. Box 187, McAllen, TX, 78505. The United Way of South Texas is located at 1200 E. Hackberry, Suite F in McAllen. You can also make an online donation on the United Way of South Texas website atwww.unitedwayofsotx.org. The Monitor is not accepting donations.
Day 4 of the '12 Days' series
ELSA — In 11th grade, Oscar Montelongo left school to become an auto mechanic.
He never made a fortune, but it was enough to support his family. After paying his bills every month, Montelongo would lavish what remained on his wife and three young daughters.
“That’s all I know,” Montelongo said, recalling how he began fixing cars with his grandfather as a 13-year-old boy. Now 42, he worked at several auto shops in Elsa before taking a job at Garza’s Auto Service, a business owned by his brother in law.
When he began feeling under the weather in May, Montelongo saw a doctor, but didn’t stop working. His health steadily declined until Oct. 21, when he went to work despite feeling ill. He’d been asked to take a look at the headlights on a police car.
“I started feeling a lot of pressure in my chest,” Montelongo said. “I was going to go home. I told my wife ‘Let’s go to the doctor, let’s go to the hospital.’ But I didn’t make it.”
Instead, he collapsed and was rushed to Knapp Medical Center. The diagnosis was renal failure — his kidneys had stopped working — which means Montelongo needs dialysis twice a week and, eventually, a new kidney. If not, he’ll die.
“I know there’s somebody out there,” Montelongo said.
In Texas, the waiting list for a new kidney numbers more than 8,500 candidates, according to data from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, maintained by the federal Health Resources and Services Administration. The list includes people who’ve been waiting for a new kidney for more than five years.
Meanwhile, the illness has sapped Montelongo’s strength and sharply reduced his weight from more than 190 pounds to about 165 pounds over several weeks. Unable to work, he’s fallen behind on the rent.
Without medical insurance, Montelongo’s medical bills quickly consumed the family’s finances. His wife, Maria Medina, said she estimates the family now owes more than $70,000 for emergency care and dialysis.
The family, once self-sufficient, has now applied for both Medicaid, the federal program that provides health care to the poor, and Social Security for Montelongo, who could be without a job indefinitely.
“I’m used to working every day,” Montelongo said, adding that he’d stay late at the shop or pick up odd jobs when needed. “I never asked anything from nobody.”
For Christmas, both Montelongo and Medina said their daughters need the basics: diapers and clothes for their youngest, 4-month-old Annabella; more clothes for 2-year-old Alyah and 5-year-old Mia.
Mia has outgrown her bicycle and has asked for a new one, Medina said. But this year, they can’t afford big-ticket presents. They’re focused on immediate needs, like a crib for Annabella.
Asked what he’d like for Christmas, Montelongo looked away.
“I don’t think of anything for me,” Montelongo said. “I just want to get back to work.”
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Dave Hendricks covers McAllen and general assignments for The Monitor. He can be reached at dhendricks@themonitor.com and at (956) 683-4452.
