Brooke is currently dealing with kidney failure and must have dialysis for nine hours every night.

Her father, Jeff, is donating a kidney to Brooke and with it being almost a perfect match, doctors say the outlook is promising. 

Brooke, now 23 and living in Wollongong, completed Year 12 at Eden High School and then took a gap year before studying nursing at the University of Wollongong.  

Despite her illness, Brooke will graduate next month and has been offered a nursing position in Shellharbour next year.

Goodpasture Syndrome occurs when the immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys healthy body tissue.  People with this syndrome develop substances that attack a protein called collagen in the filtering units of the kidneys.

Brooke’s mother Lee, Jeff, and sisters Jo, 21, and Stef, 17, live in Nethercote. Lee previously worked in the Commonwealth Bank in Eden and currently works at Target in Merimbula; Jeff works for himself as a sheet metal worker. Brooke’s high school sweetheart, Brett Spicer, has been a pillar of strength.

Fundraiser Jasmine Davis said that meeting Brooke and her family at the family home in Nethercote was a lovely experience.

“They are all so very close, and grateful to Operation Orange and Black and the community for the help they are going to receive for the associated costs of the transplant and medications,” Ms Davis said. 

Operation Orange and Black has a trust account at the IMB in Eden; donations can be made via direct deposit to BSB 641 800, account 2007 33198. 

This account has funds left over from Eden woman Emily Dodsworth’s transplant.

Street stalls, selling cupcakes, will be held in the coming weeks, and an acrylic glass photograph donated by local photographer Phil Small will be raffled.

A cake stall will be held tomorrow, Friday, October 28, at 10am outside IGA.