CEDAR FALLS - Twenty-five years ago, Cathy Twito gave her son life. On Dec. 2, she'll do it again.

That's the day Caleb Twito will receive a kidney from his mother after a bout with meningitis destroyed his.

Caleb Twito was a college student enjoying a men's retreat with the University of Northern Iowa Navigators in September 2003 when he began to feel under the weather. His condition worsening, he cut his trip short and headed home to the care of his parents. "I felt like I was coming down with the flu," Caleb Twito said. "When my fever reached 105.6 degrees, my mother got very concerned."

Cathy Twito consulted a neighbor who was an emergency room nurse. She was advised to take her son to the hospital immediately. Twelve hours after arriving at Sartori Hospital, Caleb Twito was airlifted to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City. Doctors there diagnosed him with meningitis, an infection of the tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. Caleb had been vaccinated against meningitis, but not the type he contracted, which is not covered by a vaccine.

"When I arrived at the hospital, Caleb was hooked up to almost every medical device imaginable," recalls Cathy. "His body was rapidly shutting down. He was dying."

It's been five years since that frightening day, and thanks to a quick diagnosis and powerful antibiotics, Caleb Twito has recovered from the illness. But the damage it did to his kidneys was irreparable.

"Since contracting meningitis, I've always known that I would eventually need a kidney transplant," Caleb Twito said. … "It's something my mom and I have always talked about. When we knew that it had to happen, and she stepped forward right away."

A battery of tests at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., revealed Cathy Twito was a match.

"The timing is good because they now have new advanced procedures for this type of surgery that they didn't have five years ago," she said.

Cathy Twito and family will head to Rochester just three days after daughter Sarah's wedding. Caleb Twito also is getting married in February.

"Even though it's a busy time for our family, I'm feeling like I know that I need to do this," Cathy Twito said. "I am a little nervous but I am going forward. I tell people that I need prayer."