Paul Pennell

I had been relatively healthy most of my life, or so I thought. When I was told that the prescription medication that I had taken for 20 years had caused damage to my kidneys, it didn’t seem fair. This same prescription was the very thing that allowed me to maintain a normal lifestyle and hold full-time employment. Fortunately, another medication was found that gave me new hope. It was about this time that I personally chose to become an organ donor. I continued to be monitored regularly by my doctor and was found to have severe hypertension which is only moderately controlled even today. I was encouraged to start the process of becoming listed to receive a kidney in the Fall of 2015. After completing all the steps, classes, medical tests and exams, I received my letter in March 2016 that I was added to the transplant waiting list at Lutheran Hospital Transplant Center.