Pleasant Valley High Coach Donates Kidney To Sister On Dialysis, Spotlighting Urgent Need During National Kidney Month

Pleasant Valley Coach Donates kidney To Sister, Saving Her Life Through Transplant

USA: As National kidney Month spotlights more than 37 million Americans living with kidney disease, a Pleasant Valley High baseball coach quietly turned coach’s instinct into lifesaving medicine by donating a kidney to his older sister three years ago. The transplantation ended her dependence on dialysis and reshaped both their lives.

The coach, who has led the Vikings for eight seasons, set aside the dugout and focused on medical readiness once he and his sister were identified as a compatible match. He undertook a strict pre-donation fitness and diet regimen—losing weight, increasing hydration and changing eating habits—to meet surgical requirements and ensure a safe living donor donation.

Kathy Fernandez, now 60, had battled lupus since her 20s and ultimately experienced kidney failure that required dialysis. Faced with the uncertain life expectancy that long-term dialysis can bring, the transplant offered a vital alternative. Following the operation, Fernandez returned to life in Grass Valley and is reported to be doing well.

Medical teams stress that living donors require ongoing care: maintaining hydration, regular exercise, and avoiding tobacco to reduce risks such as high blood pressure. The coach remains active with one kidney, and the family frames the transplantation as a profound, life-altering commitment that underscores the difference a living donor can make.

Video originally published on 2026-03-20 00:58:29