Want an uplifting story that gives you faith in humanity? I am so proud to know these two amazing women, and humbled to witness a beautiful expression of humanity, friendship, and bravery. One needs a kidney and the other is donating it!

Kelly Hartog is a Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) sufferer and was placed on the UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing) transplant list. It’s been a long and difficult road, but amazingly, after a year of searching, an extraordinary writer friend stepped up and turned out to be a match — Pamela Stockwell! They’ve never met in person, but have become very close from afar. And on March 29, 2022, Pamela’s kidney will travel thousands of miles across the United States to save Kelly’s life.

kidney donation poster

We all met through the amazing organization, Women’s Fiction Writers Association. WFWA is extraordinary. I’m honored to be a member since 2016 and serve as the Webinar Program Leader and Host since spring 2019. Being part of this organization has been a game-changer for my writing career. I love connecting with the members in person at the annual retreat and online virtually.

And we never needed virtual so much as we did when the pandemic hit! One of the members, my fabulous writer pal Michele Montgomery, started offering “write ins” where members met virtually to write together during the pandemic. Write Ins provided companionship, accountability, camaraderie, and friendship during a difficult time.

I then started hosting a smaller virtual writers group on Friday mornings during the pandemic for more in-depth conversation about writing (but with no actual writing — ha ha). We named it the TGIF Rogue Writers. The Rogues have become an extremely close-knit group, sharing our writing journeys, and of course, our personal lives as well. It has provided me with a front-row seat to the development of this long-distance friendship between Kelly and Pamela, which has now turned into a beautiful gesture, one that is literally life-saving.

I live in NorCal and my father lives in the LA area. I’ll be heading down that way this spring to see him. I’m hoping to visit Kelly in LA after her kidney transplant surgery. I will be sure to say hi to Pamela’s kidney after it’s cross-country trip from the East Coast. And give Kelly the biggest hug from all of the writers in our fabulous supportive community that won’t be able to see her in person but hold her in their hearts. That will be a seriously big hug!!

Please keep these two in your thoughts as they undergo their respective medical procedures on March 29.

Read more on Pamela’s blog: https://www.pamelastockwell.com/post/my-kidney-s-going-to-california

Buy Pamela’s debut novel, A Boundless Place: https://www.pamelastockwell.com/a-boundless-place

Donate to help offset Kelly and Pamela’s medical costs, lost wages, and post-operative care:

Kelly Hartog

Kelly Hartog

Pamela Stockwell