Class Act: Katy Baudendistel
Seton Catholic Central High School

Grade: junior
While she’s never needed a transplant herself, 16-year-old Katy Baudendistel knows that organ donations save lives. That’s why the Windsor resident organized the Run for Life 5K, which took place at Seton last month, for her Girl Scout Gold Award. The daughter of a Girl Scout leader, Katy has participated in Scouting for 10 years, as well as 4-H for 12. She’s also a member of the school’s ADSIP group, which promotes healthy lifestyles, and the Committee of Retention and Enrollment, takes piano lessons, works as a teacher’s assistant at the school and teaches religious education at her church. She has two sisters and a brother, and is the daughter of Nancy and Tom Baudendistel.

How many people did you have at the Run for Life?
About 130 I believe, not including volunteers.

What inspired you to pursue this project?
My aunt received a bone marrow transplant two years ago; she recently died. And my boyfriend also needs a kidney transplant.

What was the purpose of the run?
It was to raise awareness, overall. We signed up over 40 organ donors. I’m not sure if you’ve seen the statistics, but one organ donor can save or enhance the lives of up to 50 people.

Is organ donation something your classmates think about?
Before, I don’t think people thought about it on a day-to-day basis. It needs to be brought up.

How much work was the event?
A lot more than anyone could imagine! You have to get insurance, permits, volunteers. You have to organize where it is, the food, design the t-shirt. We created formulas for every stage of the project. The excess money is going toward the run next year.

How much time did all that take?
Well over 100 hours. Every night, I worked on it. My mom helped out a lot.

What kept you in the Girl Scouts all these years?
There are seven of us in it and most of us have been friends since we were born. It’s something positive. It’s fun. And having your mom as a Girl Scout leader is an incentive, too.

What colleges are you looking at?
I really like BU; I work there in the summer, in Global AcademicPublishing. I’m a clerk. I’m hoping to go to Fulton-Montgomery up near Albany for two years.

What do you hope to do, career-wise?
Clinical psychologist. I think everyone could use a therapist. They help a lot.

What do you do in your spare time?
I like to hang out with my friends, shop, watch my sister’s softball games.

What was the hardest badge to earn in scouting?
It wasn’t actually a badge, but we do something called GIRLtopia. You have to organize this girl’s event; it’s a project promoting howgreat girls are. That was probably the most time-consuming.