Kathryn was inspired to donate after reading about her recipient who had been on home dialysis for more than four years. She immediately asked if this is something she could do and felt that this person was as deserving of a new lease on life as anyone she was related to. She felt selfish “hoarding” her kidney on the off chance that someone she was related to might need it in the far-off future. Kathryn’s friend calls her a “why not?” kind of person, and when she thought of the obstacles faced in donation, there really were not too many in her “why not” column. 

She is climbing to fulfill a lifelong bucket list item born from hiking the Rim–to–Rim on the Grand Canyon.  Not knowing when or how she would fit it into her life, when the opportunity arose to do this AND promote living kidney donation with a group of fellow donors, she had to jump on it! 

Kathryn is an architect in Bayside, Wisconsin.   She lives with her husband, three daughters ages 20, 17, 13 and dog Billie.  When she is not climbing mountains, she enjoys running, hiking, triathlon, and crossword puzzles. Kathryn donated her kidney on July 13, 2017, at Aurora St. Luke’s Hospital, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  “Ultimately it came down to this: if anyone I loved needed someone to step forward and donate, I’d hope that they would. If this is the kind of world I hope to live in, then I need to be willing to step forward, too.”