Former Columbus State cheerleader needs a new kidney. A teammate will donate one of hers
.jpeg "Katie Birkhead, left, and Chelsie Horton became friends and Columbus State University Cheer teammates in 2012. On May 29, Birkhead will donate a kidney to Horton.")
A kidney donation from a former Columbus State University cheerleader will help a teammate get the vital organ she needs to survive.
CSU shared in a news release the story of Chelsie Horton, Katie Birkhead and the eight-person donation chain that will reconnect these teammates for life.
Horton was 2 years old when she she diagnosed with a kidney disease called familial juvenile nephronophthisis. But she beat the odds to participate in gymnastics from age 4 to 11. She then started cheerleading in middle school, continued at North Oconee High School in Bogart, Georgia, and at CSU, starting in 2012.
At CSU, Horton finished in the top four of the National Co-Ed Partner Stunt competition and placed fifth in the National All-Girl Partner Stunt competition. Her team finished in the top three every year that she was on the team, including winning the Division II national title in her final year.
“Cheering at CSU was one of the best things I’ve ever done,” Horton said.
Since graduating with an associate’s degree in general studies in 2014, Horton continued to beat the odds. She made it through a high-risk pregnancy to deliver a healthy baby girl in October 2015. She moved back to Bogart and now works in internet sales at Heyward Allen Toyota in Athens.
In 2018, Horton’s kidney function started to decline.
Birkhead, an online graduate student at CSU, graduated from Flowery Branch High School and lives in Gwinnett County, where she teaches physical education and coaches cheerleading for middle and high school students. She saw on Facebook that Chelsie needs a new kidney.
“As soon as she posted about it, I didn’t even have a second thought,” Birkhead said. “You develop such a bond through cheerleading that I think any of our teammates would have done the same.”
Birkhead wasn’t a match for Horton because their blood types aren’t compatible, but by participating in the Paired Exchange Program, they will get the desired result.
The program finds matches for incompatible donors and recipients. On May 7, Horton received the call that a match had been found for them.
She wrote on her GoFundMe page established to help pay for medical expenses, “After 2 years, 3 months and 13 days our prayers have been answered!”
Horton and Birkhead are part of an eight-person donation chain matching four donors with four recipients. Horton will receive a kidney from Oregon. Birkhead will donate a kidney to someone in Pennsylvania. Their surgeries are scheduled for May 29 at Piedmont Atlanta Hospital.
“Not only is it helping those four people receive a kidney, but it frees up four more spots for others who are on the list, so it’s an amazing opportunity,” Birkhead said. “This whole thing is about as exciting as our national championship felt.”
