OCSO deputy in need of kidney transplant

Okaloosa County Deputy Johnnie Briggs knows how to deal with reckless drivers, school zone speeders and traffic crashes.

Now Briggs faces a challenge his 20-year law enforcement career couldn't prepare him for. In early June, he began undergoing renal dialysis on a grueling schedule of four hours a day, three days a week, at a center in Fort Walton Beach.

Briggs was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease in 1998. Currently, his two kidneys combined operate at only 10 percent of normal function. Still, determined to pull his typical 12-hour shifts as a member of the traffic enforcement unit at the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office, Briggs fights the constant fatigue.

"I have good days and bad days," said Briggs. "But it does make you very, very tired".

Briggs needs a kidney transplant to regain a normal lifestyle. He's currently on the transplant needs list at Tulane University Hospital in New Orleans. There is typically a three to seven year waiting period. In Florida alone, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says more than 3,000 people are registered as in need of a kidney transplant.

Briggs was encouraged after recently hearing about a happy ending for an Escambia County deputy in a similar plight whose wife donated a kidney. Briggs' girlfriend hoped to do the same for him, but is unable. He's hoping public awareness of his plight will spark a potential donor's interest.

Interested potential donors are asked to contact Kim Thompson for further information at kidneyforjohnnie@yahoo.com or phone 850-218-8818.