In this inspiring episode, during Donate Life Week, Kim sits down with liver transplant recipient, athlete, and advocate Kate Clark to share an extraordinary story of resilience, gratitude, and making the most of a second chance at life. After losing her brother to the same rare genetic liver condition that later led to her own transplant at just 17 years old, Kate reflects on the challenges of chronic illness, survivor's guilt, and the life changing gift of organ donation. She opens up about the mindset shift that helped her reclaim her future, the importance of living in the present, and how self-love, resilience and movement have shaped her journey through grief, recovery, and beyond.

Kate also shares how she transformed her second chance into an incredible athletic career, representing Australia at the World Transplant Games and inspiring others through her work as a trustee of the World Transplant Games Federation. As we recognise Donate Life Week, this conversation is a timely reminder of the profound impact organ donation can have, not only on recipients, but on families and communities. Kate encourages us to register as organ donors, have meaningful conversations with our loved ones about our wishes and embrace every opportunity life presents with courage, purpose and gratitude.

About Kate

Kate Clark grew up in regional New South Wales, the youngest child of Kim and John, with her older brother Johnny. Johnny became seriously unwell at the age of three, and the family moved first to Wollongong and later Sydney to be closer to specialist medical care. He received his first liver transplant at nine, a second at eleven, and a third at fifteen, a long and difficult journey that shaped the entire family. Kate was diagnosed with the same disease at eight. Johnny passed away at fifteen due to complications following surgery; Kate was twelve.

Kate spent her teenage years refusing to let illness dictate her life. Running became her way to cope with grief, anger, and uncertainty, a place where she could choose her own pace and make some sort of sense of things. Even with chronic liver failure she competed at a high level in both state and national titles in athletics and cross country. At seventeen she was listed for a transplant, a decision she resisted after watching her brother’s experience. That changed one morning when she describes having an epiphany: if she was going to face a transplant, she wanted to be fit enough to take it on. She returned to training, ran some of the best times of her life, and received the call that evening.

Her surgery lasted more than 21 hours. Her parents were told not to expect her home. She spent three months in hospital, three more with home nursing, and then - stubbornly - returned to training. She went on to represent Australia at the World Transplant Games, compete at the OCR World Championships, and build a life fixed on movement, community, and purpose.

Kate eventually landed her dream job at Transplant Australia, and spent two years working to motivate, inspire and engage the transplant community. She now serves as Chair of the Sports & Events Committee for the World Transplant Games Federation and Chair of the Transplant Football Commission. She is delivering the second Transplant Football World Cup and the first-ever Women’s Transplant Football Showcase tournament in September – something she is extremely proud of.

Her family’s health story continued to shape her life: her father received a transplant in 2004 and continues to thrive, and her mother passed away from cancer in 2018.

Kate’s experiences have given her a clear sense of what matters and what doesn’t. She has learned to value the small, ordinary parts of life, the things that actually get you through hard moments. Living so close to illness and loss taught her that material things mean nothing in the end, and that what lasts is gratitude, empathy, and humility. These principles (she hopes) guide how she works, how she leads, and how she shows up for others in the transplant community and beyond.

Her definition of Self Love is: Self love is setting boundaries. It is accepting myself for all of my warts and all.

Her favourite quote is : You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.

Links to follow:

Website: https://www.donatelife.gov.au/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lxtforlife

Fundraising page to help get the Australian Transplant women's football team to Frankfurt: https://transplant-australia-football-club.raiselysite.com/kate-clark

Quotes:

Sometimes you must endure the ride in order to get the best parts.

Sometimes you are down the bottom, and you don’t know whether to get off or go back round again. But then the life at the top is full of beautiful moments and a great view.

If I am going to face it, I need to face it head on and do what I can to be able to, come out the other side and live a normal life.

Running certainly helped with overcoming anger, grief, all those things after my brother passed away.

Tell me I can’t do something and I will do my best to prove you wrong.

It is a huge part of the transplant journey. It is called survivor’s guilt.

There is often so much guilt that is wrapped up in gratitude.

Every morning we wake up, paying tribute and trying to honour the gift that we are being given.

Families have to make a decision at the most harrowing time of their life to pass that gift on.

We try and show them the gratitude that we have for them making that decision at the time, in their moment of utter grief and tragedy.

Face the challenges that are right in front of you today and then move past them.

You don’t look in the rear view mirror, you look forward because that is the way you are going.

Tomorrow is not guaranteed to anyone.

Live the now.

Focus on here, focus on the now, do the things that bring you joy, share that joy wherever you can.

Be present in the now.

Be present for the people that you love as well.

If you are willing to accept, you should also be willing to give.

Trying to respect my needs while still being there for others.

Face the challenges that are right in front of you today. And then move past them.

One donor can save up to seven lives and then better the lives of many more.

It is important to have that conversation with them, advise them of your wishes, ensure that they understand.

The time just enables you to reflect on the positives with a smile and with love in your heart rather than the sadness.

Allowing yourself to just feel. Feel the feels. But don't wallow in them.

It is nice to have a cry sometimes. It is nice to have a laugh.

You do have the strength within you, whether you believe it in yourself or not.

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