April 10, 2024
Hannah Purdy '21
Submitted by Thomas Purdy
Our daughter, Hannah Purdy, attended Cal Lutheran, 2013-2015. She loved the school and was an important part of the school’s newly created women’s golf team. Her experience at Cal Lu furthered her development as a confident young woman who has continued to excel as an employee, community member, and active church participant. Hannah has always made us proud, but this past year she went above and beyond our wildest expectations. Hannah’s older brother, Anson, suffered from a rare autoimmune disorder that caused his kidneys to fail. Anson, himself a successful former student and college athlete, was in serious distress and in need of a kidney. He was only 31 in early 2019 when he was put on daily dialysis and was in serious of dying. After going through numerous older family members as potential donors, Hannah stepped forward and made the commitment to donate one of her kidneys to her brother. This came at the same time she was getting married and starting her new life in Boise, ID. As a matter of fact, her brother “attended” her wedding via a FaceTime feed from Towson, Maryland, since he was too sick to attend in person. A few months later, Hannah and her brother were in separate hospital rooms in March of 2020 at Georgetown University as the world prepared to shut down due to the Covid outbreak. Her brother was so sick and depleted. The young man who still holds the school record as part of the 4 x 400 relay team at Rhodes College in Memphis, was totally and absolutely at the mercy of his sister’s kidney and a team of talented surgeons and nurses at Georgetown. The result was nothing short of miraculous. It turned out that Hannah was a perfect six-point match – an oddity in transplants and a gift to Anson of unexpected proportions. It very well could turn out that the kidney Hannah donated could function for Anson’s entire life! But the story doesn’t end here. Anson and his wife of five years, Hannah Breckenridge, faced a reality of never being able to have children as a result of the transplant process that included powerful drugs that had to be administered before the surgery and for the duration of Anson’s life. Well, life had other plans for Anson and his wife – they welcomed our first grandchild into the world in February of 2021! And not to be out done, Hannah Purdy, the proud Cal Lu grad, is expecting our second grandchild in August of 2021! Despite the gut wrenching trials of the past few years, we feel so fortunate to have experienced the absolute highs and lows of life. Hannah Purdy (along with her brother and their respective spouses) continues to provide us with a living example of what it means to live life to its fullest and to share the joy of living with all of those she touches on a daily basis. Cal Lutheran was a vital part of making Hannah the wonderful person she is today.