By DANIEL TAYLOR, Correspondent
Stephen McClendon is alive and well today thanks to the grace of God and the selfless act of his close friend Nathan Haskew, who donated one of his kidneys.
McClendon and Haskew, both deacons at Albertville First Baptist Church, underwent the donation surgery three weeks ago at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, with all signs so far indicating a resounding success.
The process began months ago, as the two men underwent a series of tests to rule out any potential complications. However, for McClendon, it was a condition more than 10 years in the making.
“We were on a mission trip in Dallas, Texas, doing some construction work in 2014,” McClendon explained. “We were putting siding on a house, and I hit my thumb with a hammer and got a staph infection. They gave me Bactrim for the staph infection, and I had a reaction to it. That’s what started the process of shutting down my kidneys.”
For years, he said he suffered from only minor symptoms, until last August when things took a turn for the worse.
“In November, I had a kidney biopsy at Huntsville Hospital, and figured out through that process that my kidneys were pretty much just shot,” he said.
At that point, his only options were regular dialysis treatments or a transplant.
Haskew was one of 11 people who volunteered to donate, McClendon said. All but him were eventually disqualified.
“Nathan was the first one that told me that he was going to fill out the application,” McClendon said. “… I told my wife as soon as Nathan told me, I said, ‘I don’t know why, but I just feel like it’s going to be Nathan…’ Several people got disqualified for one reason or another … but Nathan just continued to move through the steps.”
The two men met at church seven years ago when Haskew moved from Muscle Shoals to Albertville, where he now teaches band at the local middle school. McClendon is a life-long Albertville native, working as a graphic designer.
“[Stephen]’s just, he’s a wonderful, wonderful man,” Haskew said. “He’s a great father, he’s a great husband. … He didn’t ask me personally, but I just felt a call. God said, ‘Go get tested.’”
Haskew said he and his wife always had a peace about the decision, but he was concerned about potentially getting a late start to the new school year.
“I was officially approved to be his donor there towards the end of July. And because I’m a teacher, it was like, ‘Oh my goodness, we’re right here at the start of school. So this is going to be a little chaotic,’” he said. “But it was all God’s timing because the way the surgery worked out, it was on the first day of school for Albertville City.
“But it was an opportunity where me as a band director, our first few weeks is just really kind of getting off the ground and rolling. So if I have to be out of the classroom, the best time for me to have done that was right now. … So the fact that the timing worked out the way it was, it was all God’s timing to be able to make this happen and to do it to where it just works so smoothly.”
He continued, “It was a lot of prayer. I had conversations with my wife. She and I just had a peace about it the entire time. I said, you know, if this is meant to be, this is meant to be. God will make a way. God will provide and he’ll, he’ll make it clear. He’ll make it obvious that this is, this is his plan.
“And throughout the process it just, one thing would lead to another and led to another. And you know, mentioning the timing of this … had the surgery not happened, [McClendon] was going to have to start dialysis the week of surgery. So again, it’s just the timing of all of this, it just points to God having his hand in it at all times.”
Haskew and McClendon still have follow-up appointments to attend, and McClendon will be on immunosuppresnets the rest of his life. But both men are thankful for their friendship and God’s providence throughout the ordeal.
“We’ve learned how good he really is through this whole process,” Haskew said. “We’ve learned the power of prayer, because we’ve felt it. We’ve seen it in action. We’ve seen it come to pass.”
McClendon said, “It’s the most humbling experience I’ve ever had. Just to know that somebody is willing to literally give up part of themselves to give you life. Because, I mean, without this, I could have done dialysis for several years, but without a kidney transplant, I would have died young. And so it’s very humbling knowing that someone’s willing to give up part of themselves to save your life.”
Nathan Haskew, left, and Stephen McClendon were all-smiles after Haskew donated a kidney to McClendon last month at a Nashville, Tenn., hospital. Both men live in Albertville, where they met at First Baptist Church. Haskew is the director of the Albertville Middle School band and McClendon is a graphic designer. SPECIAL TO THE LEADER
