Del Mar Brownie Troop 1740 donates funds to help battle kidney and liver disease

Next time you see the Brownies doing their annual cookie sale door to door or in front of Vons, maybe you’ll smile when you know what some troops do with their cookie sale proceeds. Del Mar Brownie Troop 1740 is doing something unexpected with their cookie sale money. Under the leadership of Shawna Densmore, these Del Mar Hills and Heights second-graders have chosen to donate their proceeds to charities supporting the fight against kidney and liver disease.

Inspired by two local elementary school students who were born with kidney and liver disease, Jake Konopacke, brother to Brownie Taylor, and Nicholas Wallace, friend of Brownies Claire Bickett and Claire Deller, the girls have learned the importance of organ donation.

Del Mar Heights fourth-grader Jake Konopacke recently underwent a lifesaving kidney transplant. His mother, Victoria, was a match and able to donate one of her kidneys for Jake. Both Jake and his mom are recovering well and are considered a success!

Del Mar Hills sixth-grader and avid lacrosse player Nick Wallace is waiting for a liver transplant and is on the transplant list from UCLA.

On Saturday, May 12, Nick, Jake and the Brownies — along with their families and many community members — will be walking in the 2012 Liver Walk at the San Diego Zoo. You can still register for the walk by going to

www.liverfoundation.org/sandiego/walk

1. Look for the Team Nicholas link.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, inspired by his friend and Apple CEO Steve Jobs, recently announced a new tool for Facebook users encouraging organ donation. Jobs was also a liver transplant recipient. Within 24 hours of launching the new tool, over 100,000 people had registered as organ donors.