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Marion McBryde

Marion McBryde – CPA to dialysis to kidney transplant
After high school, I attended A&M for a year before transferring to Tech. I married Mona Cagle in 1965 and graduated from Tech in January 1968 after which we moved to Lake Jackson where I worked as an accountant for Dow Chemical. When I took my physical for Dow I was diagnosed with having kidney problems; we were told my kidneys would fail and that there was nothing to be done. Wow! That really put a crimp in life’s dreams. The more we read about my disease and about those with kidney failure, the darker the horizon. Dialysis patients had no quality of life in 1968; theirs was barely one of existence- 10 to 12 hours every day on a dialysis machine as big as a bed. Those patients were true pioneers who have made life better for countless others who have followed.
Our son, Trevor, was born in the fall of 1968 and we soon replaced the doubts about our future with a renewed urgency. I began to study for the CPA exam and in 1970 moved our family to Ft. Worth where I joined a CPA firm. Our daughter, Carol, was born the very next year and I also fortunately passed the CPA exam. Within a couple of months of getting my license, I had the opportunity to become partner in an established two-man firm where I really got my CPA “learnin’” Virtually everything I picked up was new to me and a challenge that required me to quickly acquire new knowledge and skills through endless hours each night at the office. But education is a good thing, no matter the cost and circumstances.
I was asked to join a partnership in Dallas in 1973, so we moved again. That renewed urgency found after my diagnosis of pending kidney failure in 1968 had certainly produced some quick results, which can only be described as blessings for our young family. Our family was complete, I had been able to establish myself professionally, and medical advances in dialysis and renal transplantation had made great strides. Nevertheless, by late 1978, my kidneys had failed to the point that I had to emerge from my state of denial and agree to begin dialysis and to depend on a machine for my life. Within a few months, Mona had trained to be my caregiver and we were able to do my 5 hour/ thrice weekly treatments at home. We dialyzed for 7 years, usually in the evenings.
During those 7 years, Mona was Vice President at Lomas and Nettleton and I continued to work full-time at my CPA firm. We coached kid’s sports and were den parents on the evenings we weren’t dialyzing. And I say we dialyzed, because it was hard on me physically but it also was emotionally draining for Mona as well. Hemo-dialysis in a rural setting where power failure, water contamination, or catastrophic accidents can occur is a tremendous responsibility for the caregiver. She is my hero. By 1985, renal transplantation had come a long way; no longer did it require removal of both kidneys and more than 18 weeks in hospital isolation for only a 20% chance of graft survival after one year post transplant. By then, survival rates were up to 50% and hospital stays were much shorter. My older brother, Carl, tested as if we were identical twins and gave me a kidney and a new chance at life in 1985. I kept my kidneys and left the hospital after only a week.
Life was more normal now and Mona and I had found some time we did not have before. We took up golf to be able to spend more quality time together; however, she became so much better than me, she said my looking for my ball was slowing her down and suggested I play with the guys. So much for that quality time together!
In became very involved with the Texas Kidney Foundation and with the National Kidney Foundation. Together, we served in most local official posts, on boards, committees, attended fundraisers, made speeches and did just about anything and everything that needs to be done in a not-for-profit organization . As a member of the national committees, as national treasurer, and as invited speakers, we were able to attend quarterly and annual national meetings together. Mona and I enjoyed giving back and sharing our blessings so that others suffering from kidney failure might have hope for their tomorrows. This was our truly our quality time for 15 very satisfying years.
Back to the professional side of events, in 1998, we merged our CPA firm to become a part of the largest Texas based CPA firm where I was the partner in charge of business appraisals. I left that firm in 2003 to form a business appraisal firm which I relocated to Marble Falls/Horseshoe Bay in 2007 where we, our son and daughter, their spouses and our 5 grandchildren live. Every day is a gift, recognize it and share it!

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