Days After Life-Saving Transplant at Stanford Children’s, Young Patriots Fan Will Attend Super Bowl Thanks to Anonymous Donor

A 9-year-old boy who underwent a life-saving kidney transplant at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford just days ago has been discharged and is headed to the 2026 Super Bowl this Sunday to cheer on his favorite team, the Patriots, thanks to the generosity of an anonymous donor.

Douglas “Deuce” Bolkeim from Honolulu, Hawaii, received his kidney transplant last week and has been recovering at Packard Children’s Hospital under close medical supervision. In the days following his surgery, he made a simple wish: team gear to cheer on his favorite NFL team. He hoped for something familiar—a Patriot’s t-shirt he could wear.

Through the Little Wishes program, which brings joy to hospitalized children, Deuce got his Patriots t-shirt.

“Ever since he was little, he knew I was following the Patriots,” Deuce’s father, Douglas, said. “It came through my mind, ‘why don’t you let them know we want to go [to the game]?’ But I wanted to let him make the wish. We were really thankful for what he wished for,” Douglas added.

Days after the procedure and after careful evaluation, Deuce’s medical team determined that he was recovering well and approved his discharge from the hospital.

Then came the surprise.

Early Friday evening, the family received unexpected news: an anonymous donor had gifted Deuce tickets to the 2026 Super Bowl. The benefactors, a local family who choose to remain anonymous, have a child with medical issues and wished to give back to the community. The game, the National Football League’s championship matchup scheduled for Sunday, February 8, 2026, features the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks and will be played at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara—the same metropolitan area where Deuce has been receiving care.

“We were very surprised when we got the news,” Douglas, said. “It’s probably the greatest news we received since we got here.”

The timing makes the experience especially remarkable. Just days after a major transplant surgery, Deuce is preparing to attend one of the most widely watched sporting events in the country. His medical team worked closely with the family to establish clear guidelines to minimize health risks, including infection-prevention measures and activity limitations.

The Bolkeim family, now residing in Honolulu, Hawaii, are from the Marshall Islands. There, Deuce’s care team informed them that the local hospital lacked the necessary resources to treat him. In January 2024, the family discovered that Deuce was experiencing kidney failure, prompting them to fly to Oahu where he began dialysis treatment. Toward the end of 2024, Deuce was placed on the transplant waiting list. Just a week ago, the family received the call notifying them that Deuce was a match for a transplant, leading them to arrive at Packard Children’s Hospital on Friday, January 30, 2026.

“We’d like to share how grateful we are for the [care team] and all of those who helped in Deuce’s journey,” Douglas said. “We pray God blesses them abundantly.”

As kickoff approaches, Deuce will attend the Super Bowl not only as a fan, but as a testament to the impact of generosity—from the organ donor who made his transplant possible to the anonymous individual who transformed a small post-surgery wish into a life-changing experience.

The pediatric kidney transplant team at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford is a national transplant volume leader supporting one of the busiest pediatric kidney transplant centers in the United States.

Learn more at: Pediatric Kidney Transplant – Stanford Medicine Children’s Health