In 2022, Ivy Sabini Kaji was gravely ill and in desperate need of a kidney transplant. Struggling with the difficulty of asking for such a big favor, she created Facebook and Instagram pages solely dedicated to finding a donor. What she never expected was that a complete stranger would see her post and decide to save her life.
Hundreds of miles away in Cortez, Colorado, Katie Herman stumbled upon Ivy’s plea on social media. Something about the post stuck with her, and she couldn’t shake the feeling that she was meant to help. “I have two of something I don’t necessarily need two of, and somebody else really needs this,” Katie said. To her, the decision was a no-brainer.
On December 9, Katie underwent surgery at HCA HealthOne Presbyterian St. Luke’s, donating her kidney to Ivy. The impact was immediate. “From the moment I woke up, I felt so much better,” Ivy said, recalling how she instantly regained color in her skin. Overwhelmed with gratitude, she vowed to live each day with appreciation and to cherish the second chance at life that Katie had given her.
Meanwhile, Katie quickly bounced back. Just five weeks after surgery, she was playing volleyball again. By eight weeks, she was lifting weights, and within three months, she was preparing for a Tough Mudder competition in Arizona. Her recovery highlights the resilience of living donors, proving that donation is not only life-changing for the recipient but also manageable for the donor.
Ivy and Katie, once strangers connected only through social media, now share a lifelong bond—an online connection that turned into an unbreakable family tie.
