“The light has gone out of our lives.” - Jawaharlal Nehru
Bill Peckham is no more. He passed away a couple of days back. I knew Bill from the time I was considering home hemodialysis (HHD). He was a regular on the Home Dialysis Central Forum always giving tips to newbies like me on how to make HHD work for you. Bill was one of the reasons I got the confidence to begin HHD. An untiring advocate, Bill fought relentlessly for dialysis patients and their rights in the US. He worked in various positions in the Northwest Kidney Centres in Seattle.
Bill’s most significant contribution to dialysis patients world over was due chiefly to what he called his ‘wanderlust comorbidity’! He loved to travel. Even after getting on dialysis, he traveled. As he wrote in his blog, he got dialysis in 32 countries in five continents of the world. In what was probably his most famous trip, he got dialysis on a rafting trip down the River Rogue in the Grand Canyon. He has also done boat trips, cruises and many other regular trips round the world. Click on this link for a bunch of posts from his blog on traveling on dialysis.
Bill getting dialysis on the raft in the River Rogue
Bill Peckham was my hero on dialysis. He continued to guide me through various ups and downs I faced on HHD. Whenever I had any issue which I was unable to get my head around, I would reach out to him. He always had some useful answers. He was my inspiration to travel despite being on dialysis. I myself got dialysis in a few countries and went on a dialysis cruise thanks to his continuous encouragement. Even as recently as a few months back, he pushed me to get a physiotherapist to help with my strength training. The ‘old friend’ I talk about in this post is Bill.
I had the privilege of meeting Bill during my trip to the US in 2012. I saw his HHD setup and spent a happy hour with him chatting about life on HHD.
With Bill at his home in Seattle
Bill is now gone. But he continues to live on in our hearts, our hearts filled with gratitude with all that he’s done for us. We will miss you Bill Peckham.
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