A Lehigh County woman is set to run the New York City Marathon this weekend, just one year after she gave one of her kidneys to a complete stranger. Marea Narsavage, 50, took a year off from training after the surgery, and now she's lining up for 26.2 miles through the five boroughs.
Narsavage, who competes in marathons and Iron Man competitions, learned in 2025 that it was possible to donate a kidney even to someone she had never met, according to WFMZ. She went through with the donation that year, then stepped away from training entirely. “I took a year off from training. I donated a kidney,” Narsavage said, describing the decision as time away from endurance sports to give someone else a shot at a better life.
From Seoul to the Navy to the Starting Line
Narsavage's path to Sunday's race runs through a life that has already taken her far from the Lehigh Valley. “I was adopted from Seoul, Korea, when I was a baby,” she said, and she went on to serve overseas in the U.S. Navy, stationed in England, per the station's report. She has competed in marathons and Iron Man competitions.
When she set her sights on qualifying for the New York City Marathon, it was a friend and coworker, David Drzewiecki, who helped get her into the race. Drzewiecki connected her with the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, which fields its own charity team in the marathon, the same report notes.
Returning to Endurance Sports With One Kidney
Narsavage said she asked directly whether she'd be able to return to endurance sports after losing a kidney, and the answer was yes. Medical guidance on the subject backs that up in general terms: donors can participate in marathons, ultramarathons, long-distance cycling, triathlons and other extreme endurance events after donation, according to kidneyregistry.com. That same guidance notes that high-performance athletes may need six months to a year to get back to their pre-donation performance levels, and that the return should be gradual, starting with low-intensity activity before ramping up duration and intensity.
Hydration becomes especially important for endurance athletes living with one kidney, kidneyregistry.com also notes. Separately, the National Kidney Foundation says that after recovering from surgery, donors are generally able to return to work, physical activity and a regular diet, according to kidney.org. Narsavage plans to keep training at Bob Rodale Park in Upper Macungie as she continues her routine beyond this weekend's race.
Other Donors Who Returned to the Starting Line
Narsavage isn't the only kidney donor to make it back to a marathon course. Barbara Corrigan ran the Dublin Marathon just three months after donating a kidney through a paired exchange, finishing in 5 hours, 51 minutes and 19 seconds, according to UCLA Health. Eight months after her donation, Corrigan ran and walked the LA Marathon and has since completed four more marathons, per the same account.
Nondirected donors like Narsavage — people who give a kidney without a specific recipient in mind — accounted for 5.6% of living kidney donations in 2019, according to a review published on pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. For Narsavage, the number behind her choice matters less than the message she hopes it sends.
'You Don't Have to Do Epic Things'
Narsavage said she hopes her decision to donate, and her return to endurance racing, inspires others in whatever way they're able. “You don't have to do epic things to be a part of encouraging people to do better things,” she said. She added that she's hoping to inspire others, even in small ways, to make the world a better place.
That mindset will carry her to the starting line this weekend, one year removed from an operating table and back on a course built for 26.2 miles. For Narsavage, the marathon itself seems almost secondary to the point she's already made simply by getting there.
