Living kidney Donor Hikes Grand Canyon Rim to Rim After Giving Recipient 12 More Years
Nov 11, 2025 — by Transplant News
USA: Kaci Alvarado completed a recent rim to rim hike of the Grand Canyon after serving as a living kidney donor, a feat she and others say illustrates life after transplantation rather than limits on it. The donation preceded a close friendship between donor and recipient and, according to Alvarado, added roughly 12 years to the recipient’s life. The transplant is described as life changing for both people involved and marked the start of an unexpectedly deep bond.
Alvarado’s story traces from surgery to endurance. Medical teams performed the kidney transplantation that established a new relationship between donor and recipient and redirected Alvarado’s life toward advocacy and active pursuits. She rejects the notion that donation necessarily slows a person down, pointing to the canyon hike and prior endurance events as examples of continued activity and recovery after giving an organ.
Following her surgery, Alvarado took a professional role with the Life Gift program as a family care specialist. In that capacity she supports families affected by organ donation and helps communicate how donation touches many lives. Colleagues in the program emphasized the vast need for organs and the powerful personal impact donors can have, describing the work as connecting donors, recipients and communities.
The account concludes with a note about wider community events and engagement within the transplant world, including a reference to the Transplant Games in Denver. The narrative centers on a single, demonstrative transplant: a living kidney donation that changed two lives, led the donor into advocacy, and underscored both the ongoing demand for donated organs and the possibility of vigorous life after donation.
