How an anonymous donor changed an Elizabeth City woman's life

Katisha Vertrees of Elizabeth City, North Carolina, a vascular ultrasound technician with Sentara Health, spent years fighting a battle most people never see. Complications from lupus, a disease where the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue, led her into kidney failure. For years, she endured eight hours of dialysis every night. It kept her alive, but it also took a tremendous physical and emotional toll.

In 2022, life brought both hope and heartbreak. Katisha and her husband, Taylor, were expecting their first child. But the pregnancy pushed her into end-stage kidney failure, turning a difficult diagnosis into a life-threatening one. Their joy was shattered when Katisha suffered a miscarriage at just 15 weeks.

“I try to live every day really happy and push through,” she shared. “But it was really hard.”

A search for a lifeline

The only way Katisha could regain a normal life was through a kidney transplant. She joined the nearly 100,000 people across the country waiting on a list. The wait can take years.

Determined to help, Taylor and a close friend created the Kidney 4 Katisha Facebook page, hoping social media might bring a miracle.

And then it did.

Last winter, doctors found a potential match. A completely anonymous living donor had come forward after seeing Katisha’s story.
“I think it’s crazy that we were a match, and it’s someone I completely didn’t know,” Katisha said. “A miracle.”

Dr. Duncan Yoder, surgical director of the kidney and pancreas transplant program at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, performed the surgery.
“It’s unusual to have such an altruistic donor,” he said. “But it does happen and those are often the best stories.”

A new beginning

On December 13, 2024, the wait was finally over. Katisha and her donor came through surgery with flying colors.
“I think about the future,” she said, something that once felt impossible.

Her new kidney began working beautifully. Though Katisha was briefly admitted to Sentara Heart Hospital afterward, doctors confirmed her new kidney was functioning well and was not affected by the heart attack she experienced.

“The transplant definitely saved my life,” Katisha said. "Living donor transplants make for healthier outcomes,” according to Dr. Yoder. “They work quicker, they last longer, and patients do better.”

The donor behind the gift

In February, just two months post-transplant, Katisha met her donor, Marjorie Smith of Virginia Beach, Virginia. They talked for hours. Everyone cried.
“I can’t describe it,” Katisha said. “I feel like I just gained a sister. It has been a blessing. She is like family.”

Margie had never considered organ donation before. She read Katisha’s story, and it broke her heart. On impulse, she decided: I’ll apply. What are the chances?
She didn’t tell her family at first. She didn’t want attention, praise, or recognition. "I didn’t do this for publicity,” Margie said. “I just knew I needed to help.”

Margie recovered quickly.
“I’m fine,” she said. “Life is still the same. The recovery wasn’t bad at all.”
She hopes her story shows that living donation is possible and far less daunting than many fear.

A mission to help others

After receiving her second chance, Katisha transformed the Kidney 4 Katisha Facebook page into a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit: Kidneys 4 Tidewater. Its mission is to help others find living donors, just as she did.

Her advice to those still waiting: “Stay positive and don’t give up.”

To honor their bond and to mark the 1-year anniversary of their procedures, Katisha and Margie plan to get matching tattoos, another symbol of a connection born from pure generosity.

A life forever changed

This spring, she and Taylor are preparing for another long-awaited blessing. They are in the process of adopting a baby boy, he is expected to arrive in May.

Katisha now lives untethered from dialysis, filled with gratitude for the stranger who became family. “How can you ever thank them enough?” she wondered. Then, to her donor: “Thank you so much. I owe you everything.”

To learn more about becoming a living kidney donor, visit our Living Donor Kidney Transplant page.