By Deborah Pelaez, aakpRENALIFE Independent Writer
AAKP Ambassador Elizabeth Oldham grew up on the outskirts of Cleveland, Ohio, with her siblings and parents. Her parents were successful in their careers, her mother being a dietitian and her father, a math teacher. Elizabeth had three siblings, and being a tomboy, she was very close with her older brother, William. She fondly remembers picking berries, catching tadpoles, and even working in cahoots to convince their mom to allow a pet turtle. They shared a close bond and friendship that lasted all through childhood.
After high school, William went into the Army and served during Vietnam. He talked of having a career in the military, as some of his uncles had done. During the war, he was stationed in Germany. After just a few years of service, he was dishonorably discharged and declared incompetent due to substance use. William was sent to a veterans hospital in Kentucky for drug rehabilitation, mental health, and PTSD. Elizabeth says he struggled to adjust after returning home and was never the same person she had grown up with.
Elizabeth went to college after high school. She married a lawyer and started a family of her own. She had a successful career working in development for a foundation for many years.
She continued to try to help William over the years, but she says that it was fruitless because he struggled with accepting help. He disassociated with his family due to his addictions. He struggled his entire adult life with substance use, mental health, PTSD, unemployment, and homelessness. It wasn’t until the age of 60 that he reached out for help from the emergency room after crashing into dialysis. Elizabeth took him into her home and became his caregiver.
Elizabeth says that it wasn’t an easy time, but she is grateful that she was able to be there for him. She became highly involved in his care, taking him to all his dialysis and doctors’ appointments. She also utilized all the contacts she had to try to find him the best care. She didn’t know anything about kidney disease or dialysis, so she began talking to people and educating herself in order to better help her brother. Initially, Elizabeth thought that kidney failure was something that was a result of drug use. However, she learned how common kidney failure is and how many people “crash into dialysis” just as her brother did. She was her brother’s caregiver for three years before he passed away in 2013 from congestive heart failure due to kidney disease and substance abuse. Sadly, William never overcame his addiction.
While caring for William, Elizabeth began volunteering for kidney organizations. She explains that volunteering was good for her mental health as a caregiver, “It was a relief to give back. It was nice to be able to focus on something else because when you are caring for someone who is critically ill, there is really no break.”
Giving back to the community and volunteering is something Elizabeth has always had a passion for. She started volunteering at a very young age for the Catholic Diocese in Cleveland, Ohio. Her parents instilled in her the importance of
giving back to the community and the importance of getting involved in advocacy and politics.
Now an AAKP Ambassador, Elizabeth, spends much of her free time sharing AAKP resources at local dialysis and VA clinics. She volunteers for many kidney and health related non-profits and has a foundation of her own called Ohio Kidney Advocacy. She is passionate about earlier education about CKD, veterans’ health, mental health, and homelessness.
In 2018, Elizabeth herself was diagnosed with CKD stage 3. A health-conscious person her whole life, she insisted on kidney testing, even though her primary care doctor said she did not need it. When she got the test done through a nephrologist, she learned of her diagnosis. She says, “I am fired up about this kidney situation.” She explains that people need kidney education and screening earlier. She also advocates for more education for dialysis patients. Elizabeth says, “I have the desire and ability to help people. I really enjoy it. I found my WHY.”
AAKP Resources:
AAKP’s Veterans Health Initiative: https://bit.ly/AAKPVHI
AAKP’s Coping, Living, and
Thriving with Kidney Disease:
https://bit.ly/AAKPCopingLivingThriving
This article was originally published in the Nov./Dec. 2025 aakpRENALIFE magazine.
