Thank you for visiting our page, established to honor Shane. Shane was our son, brother, nephew, friend, and a shining light to all that knew him and loved him. He dealt with many significant challenges throughout his 35 short years, but he never let those challenges get him down.
Diagnosed at age 3 with kidney disease, Shane received his first kidney transplant at the age of 6 - a kidney he received from his mother, Susan. Shane never let kidney disease hold him back from living and enjoying life. He played tee ball, little league and then went onto the all star team.He played basketball in Junior High. He did have some restrictions from most sports, which is what brought him to his passion for golf. He spent most of his high school years learning and playing the game and played on the Red Hook High School team and went on to the State championship tournament. The Red Hook golf course was Shane's second home for many summers.
In Shane's senior year he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He won that battle after four months of intense chemotherapy and then major surgery at Sloan Kettering. This setback didn’t stop his dreams. He went to Ulster Community College and played on their golf team, and then transferred to Virginia Tech where he shot his one and only hole-in-one!
During his second year at Virginia Tech his first transplant started to malfunction and he had to begin dialysis. That lasted four months and then Shane received his second transplant, this time from his sister. He went on to complete his education, received a B.A. in Mathematics and a Masters in Information Technology. It took him a little longer than most but he completed his mission. He became the IT Manager for CB Squared Services, Inc.
We are so very proud of Shane and all of his accomplishments. It is our wish to honor his legacy by the creation of the Shane Leone Memorial Scholarship Fund, a fund we will establish with the kidney foundation. We are hosting our first event to raise seed funds for this program - a golf outing at Red Hook Golf Course on September 16. Our family would be so honored if you would consider supporting this effort. We can't think of a better way to honor Shane's legacy than to establish a fund which will help other young adults living with kidney disease, pursue their dreams.
One of Shane's favorite sayings was “You know the times in your life when you are really down, when you realize who is most important in your life and I have to say all of you are. I get mad love from everyone, and I love everyone madly.”
We are so proud to be able to do this in Shane's memory. Thank you for supporting Shane and for being an important part of his life. We love him and miss him, but through this effort we will be keeping him alive and with us for many years to come.