Caitlin Renay Pendzinski

Type of Donation:          kidney recipient

Age and Location:          Age 24 – Monroe City, MO

Donation Date:             5/22/2002

Sponsor:                   Honored by Mark Wesley Pinckard-Renaissance Scholarship Fund through the Union County Community Foundation

CAITLIN’S STORY

Organ donation and transplantation is bewildering to children, but “Now Caitlin Can”, authored by Ramona Wood, explains the process and helps young children to understand. Caitlin Pendzinski was 4 years old and the hero of “Now Caitlin Can” when she received her kidney from 2023 Floragraph Honoree Mark Pinckard. She was born on May 6, 1998, with a rare kidney disease. At 4 days old she was flown to Arkansas Children’s Hospital to undergo what would be the first of many surgeries. She began dialysis at 13 days old and had to receive nutrition through a feeding tube. At birth her life expectancy was about 1 year. Many prayers and hospitalizations later, she was strong enough to receive the life changing gift of a kidney transplant.

On July 17, 2002, Mark and Caitlin’s family met. She was thriving, enjoying real food, and now could go swimming! The families have been in regular contact since. Caitlin was even a flower girl in her “new” big sister’s wedding!

After her transplant, Caitlin moved with her family to rural Missouri. Her 5th grade class planted 2 Redbud trees in front of the school to mark an anniversary of her transplant. In high school she was a cheerleader and sang in the honors choir. She enjoys watching the sunset, going fishing, and living near Mark Twain Lake. She also was able to work for UPS in Tennessee. Caitlin celebrated the 20th anniversary of her transplant in May 2022.

At the age of 17, she experienced a kidney rejection which the doctors were able to stop. Recently she went on dialysis as a result of her second kidney rejection. She is now living back in Missouri to receive the support of her family. Her donor family loves her dearly and knows Caitlin will always be a part of their family, too. Both donor and recipient families are excited and honored to be a part of the 2023 Donate Life float.