From Dialysis to Determination: How PKL Kidney Lifesavers Is Turning Kidney Disease Pain into Purpose Across Missouri

PKL Kidney Lifesavers: Fighting Kidney Disease Across Missouri

When DuJuan Harris was 17, he thought he was preparing for a routine high school football season. Instead, a simple urinalysis test changed the trajectory of his life. Diagnosed with kidney disease as a teenager, Harris has spent more than three decades navigating treatments, dialysis machines, and a life-saving transplant. Today, he channels that journey into purpose as a leading voice behind PHAmily Kidney Lifesavers (PKL) — an organization he founded with Andre Cole in 2020, under the leadership of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Missouri and Harmony Grand Chapter/Order of the Eastern Star. The PHA stands for Prince Hall Affiliated and is pronounced “family”.

PKL is a nonprofit organization focused on spreading awareness about kidney disease, particularly in the African American community. The organization provides education, patient and family support, and contributes to kidney disease research. 

What began as a single awareness event has grown into a statewide initiative offering education, advocacy, and tangible comfort to dialysis patients.

“That really started me on this journey that I’ve been on ever since,” said Harris, 51. “During that time, I didn’t know anybody else who was dealing with kidney disease. But come to find out years later, the young lady I was dating in high school had kidney disease as well, but neither of us talked about it”.

Kidney Awareness Month

March is National Kidney Month, dedicated to raising awareness about chronic kidney disease (CKD), which affects over 37 million Americans. The initiative focuses on early detection, prevention, and management, highlighting that diabetes and high blood pressure are the leading causes of kidney failure. World Kidney Day is observed on March 12th.

According to the National Kidney Foundation (NKF), African Americans are nearly 4 times more likely to develop kidney failure and represent over 35% of all dialysis patients despite making up only 13% of the U.S. population. They face higher rates of diabetes and hypertension, and are less likely to receive kidney transplants or access care, highlighting severe health disparities. 

A Journey Marked by Resilience

Harris’ condition progressed through college and into his professional career as an event planner. Eventually, he began dialysis — a grueling process that cleans the blood when the kidneys can no longer function properly. After five years on dialysis, he received a kidney transplant that gave him nine healthy years before organ failure forced him back into dialysis in 2015, where he remains today.

But Harris refuses to let kidney disease define the limits of his life.

“I want people to know that even with kidney disease, you can travel, you can work, you can enjoy life,” he shared during a recent organizational review meeting. “It requires mental strength, but it’s possible.”

From “Edutainment” to Statewide Impact

PKL was formed through the charitable efforts of Harris’s Masonic lodge. What started as an “edutainment” (education/entertainment) awareness program quickly evolved into a structured committee of kidney patients and advocates, including Jessica Williams, Monica Banks, Monica Witherspoon, and Andre Cole.

“One of the things that I did when I was the sitting Worshipful Master for my lodge was what we called ‘edutainment,’ a made-up term combining education and entertainment where we would gather and have a good time to raise awareness about kidney disease,” he said. 

Harris said the organization took deeper roots when one of his masonic brothers became personally aware of kidney disease when his fiancée donated a kidney to her mother.

“So, but that’s the typical thing,” he said. People really don’t know anything about kidney disease until somebody close to them is actually dealing with it. And so, from that, we formed the committee called PHAmily Kidney Lifesavers (PKL).”

Under the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Missouri, PKL now partners with the National Kidney Foundation, participating in kidney walks across the state and raising funds to support research and patient services. Last year alone, the organization donated $1,500 to the foundation. Since 2020, PKL has donated close to $7,500K to NKF to advance its efforts. “We got people who believe in the work we do,” Harris added.

Comfort in a Care Bag

Perhaps PKL’s most personal outreach effort is its Jessica Williams Dialysis Care Bag initiative, named after the late president of PKL, who began the program. The bags, thoughtfully assembled and distributed to dialysis clinics, include blankets, lip balm, hand sanitizer, chewable candy, and handwritten encouragement cards from young people.

For patients who spend hours each week connected to dialysis machines, those small comforts can mean everything.

In the past year, PKL distributed approximately 240 care bags. This year, the organization aims even higher — donating between 400 and 500 bags statewide while expanding outreach to seven clinics in seven Missouri cities, including rural communities such as Sikeston and Poplar Bluff, as well as metropolitan hubs like Kansas City and St. Louis.

The group will also host its own kidney awareness walk on Saturday, June 13, at Albert Oakland Park in Columbia, further strengthening its grassroots presence.

Bridging Gaps in Awareness and Access

Harris spoke candidly about disparities in dialysis access and how kidney disease disproportionately impacts communities of color. He said Education is critical.

PKL’s mission goes beyond awareness — it’s about empowerment. Harris hopes to launch a future chat line where kidney patients can share experiences and support one another, reducing the isolation that often accompanies chronic illness.

“Kidney disease can feel lonely,” he said. “We want people to know they’re not alone.”

Don’t Allow Kidney Disease Define You – You Define It

For Harris, PKL is more than a nonprofit initiative. It is an organization grounded in faith, service, and resilience. 

“It’s the body versus the mind. You’ve got to keep your mind strong,” he said. “And then the body will stay, the body will keep up. But if the mind lets go, then the body has no choice but to let go. You have to find the joy that life has to offer.”

For more information about PKL, visit Facebook PHAmily Kidney Life Savers @

https://www.facebook.com/groups/119240126191250/ or call 314-537-3202

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