Hello All,

Kennedy had her life changing transplant on Tuesday , September 19th 2023! She was wheeled back to the operating room at 7:30am. The surgery team kept Kennedy’s parents very well informed throughout surgery and everything went well.  They were able to get 6,588 islet cells per kilo of Kennedy’s weight which is amazing as the goal was 5,000!! Kennedy’s mom and dad were able to finally be at Kennedy’s bedside in the PICU around 8:30pm that night.

Post-op day 1- Stepember 20th 2023 – Kennedy did very well overnight and into post-op day 1.  Her Blood sugar levels were all over the place but doctors reassured her parents that this was to be expected the first night.  Kennedy was able to get out of bed and sit in a chair for 2 hours!! (such a strong girl!!!!) in the evening Kennedy did have some severe pain but they were able to get that managed with medicine and she was able to fall asleep for the night!

I will continue to update everyone here as I get updates from her parents.  Kennedy has a long road ahead of her but she is the strongest little girl we know and she can conquer anything!! Please continue to keep Kennedy and her family in your thoughts and prayers as they continue to navigate this new journey.

Thank you to everyone that continues to donate to COTA for Kennie, as COTA funds will allow Kennedy’s parents to not have to stress about the financial aspect on this transplant journey and they can just focus on their little girl!!