On this show, we always start at the beginning — because every transplant story is different.

For this husband of 22 years, father of three, and lifelong pastor from Charlotte, his story actually began at six weeks old. Doctors suspected hepatitis after he struggled to gain weight and keep food down. After exploratory surgery, life returned to normal — or so it seemed.

In his mid-20s, a routine scan for a kidney stone revealed something shocking: signs of cirrhosis. He had never touched alcohol. Doctors told him it was mild and would need attention “someday.” So he lived life — raising his family, working in ministry, even spending several years in Seattle — without major symptoms for nearly 20 years.

Then in the summer of 2025, everything changed fast.

He developed severe fluid retention, confusion, and memory distortion. At one ER visit, he couldn’t answer how many quarters are in $1.50. He was diagnosed with hepatic encephalopathy, a dangerous buildup of toxins affecting the brain. After multiple hospitalizations and a frightening episode where he became unresponsive at home, he was sent for transplant evaluation at Duke University Hospital.

During evaluation, doctors discovered a liver tumor (HCC), accelerating the need for transplant. He was listed — and received “the call” in less than three days.

His transplant took place September 24. He was discharged October 1 and returned home October 15 after a strong recovery.

Today, nearly five months post-transplant, his labs look excellent and he’s had no major medication complications.

In this episode, he shares:

• Living decades with silent liver disease

• The terrifying reality of hepatic encephalopathy

• Getting a transplant call almost immediately after listing

• The fears surrounding surgery and medication side effects

• Gratitude for a second chance at life

Every transplant story is different. This one is a powerful reminder that liver disease isn’t always alcohol-related — and that sometimes life can change in a matter of days.

Let’s Stay Connected:

Email: giftoflifepodcast@gmail.com

Website: www.giftoflifepodcast.com

Facebook: Gift of Life – The Organ Transplant Podcast

Listen & Share: https://lnk.to/GiftofLife

BJ Odom’s book

More Parts Than A Chicken Nugget

Grab your copy today: https://a.co/d/gNgC9jO

Available in paperback & eBook!

If this episode touched your heart, help us spread the message:

Subscribe and leave a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platforms.

Share this episode with family and friends. Together, we’re raising awareness, honoring donors, and celebrating new beginnings. Thank you for being part of our life-giving community.

Some inspire.

And some ask us to lean in and truly listen.

This is one of those episodes.

In Episode 98, we introduce you to Shawn Kortes — a husband, a father, and a man courageously fighting for more time.

Shawn is in need of an O positive kidney transplant.

His story is real. It’s raw. And it’s unfolding right now.

He shares openly about:

• Living with kidney failure

• The emotional weight of waiting

• What it feels like to depend on the generosity of a living donor

• His hope for more birthdays, more holidays, more everyday moments with his family

This conversation isn’t just about medicine.

It’s about time.

It’s about love.

It’s about the power of one person saying yes.

If you’ve ever wondered what it truly means to wait for a life-saving organ, this episode gives you a front-row seat to that reality.

And if you’ve ever considered becoming a living donor — this may be the story that moves you to take the next step.

Shawn's links to help: https://nkr.org/RJV252

Listen now.

Share widely.

You never know who might be the miracle someone is praying for.

Email: giftoflifepodcast@gmail.com

Website: www.giftoflifepodcast.com

Facebook: Gift of Life – The Organ Transplant Podcast

Listen & Share: https://lnk.to/GiftofLife

More Parts Than A Chicken Nugget

Grab your copy today: https://a.co/d/gNgC9jO

Available in paperback & eBook!

If this episode touched your heart, help us spread the message:

Subscribe and leave a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platforms.

Share this episode with family and friends.

Together, we’re raising awareness, honoring donors, and celebrating new beginnings.

Thank you for being part of our life-giving community.

Imagine entering this world on December 16, 1991… and just weeks later, on January 22, 1992, receiving the ultimate second chance — a heart transplant.

In Episode 97, we introduce you to Laszlo Mark, who is now celebrating 34 incredible years with his donor heart.

This is more than a survival story.

This is a life fully lived.

Laszlo shares what it means to grow up knowing your life began with a miracle. He reflects on the challenges, the gratitude, the responsibility, and the deep awareness that every birthday carries extra meaning. From childhood milestones to adulthood purpose, Laszlo’s journey is powerful, thoughtful, and inspiring.

And today? He’s not just living — he’s giving back.

Laszlo is actively studying and learning more about the transplant world, diving deeper into the science and community that saved his life. His passion to understand transplantation from every angle makes this conversation especially compelling.

This episode is filled with hope, perspective, and the reminder that transplantation doesn’t just extend life — it creates decades of impact.

You’ll hear:

• What it’s like to grow up as a transplant recipient

• How gratitude shapes daily living

• Why 34 years post-transplant is such a powerful milestone

• What drives Laszlo’s interest in studying the transplant world today

This is a meaningful, fascinating conversation you truly don’t want to miss.

Email: jlmark@mun.ca

Instagram: @lasz.lore

Email: giftoflifepodcast@gmail.com

Website: www.giftoflifepodcast.com

Facebook: Gift of Life – The Organ Transplant Podcast

Listen & Share: https://lnk.to/GiftofLife

More Parts Than A Chicken Nugget

Grab your copy today: https://a.co/d/gNgC9jO

Available in paperback & eBook.

If this episode touched your heart, help us spread the message:

Subscribe and leave a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platforms.

Share this episode with family and friends.

Together, we’re raising awareness, honoring donors, and celebrating new beginnings.

Thank you for being part of our life-giving community.

In this episode of Gift of Life – The Organ Transplant Podcast, we’re joined by Madison Staiger, a liver transplant recipient who received her life-saving transplant in December 2018 and recently celebrated her seven-year anniversary.

Madison shares how her journey began in February 2018, when what she believed was the flu quickly turned into a life-altering diagnosis of autoimmune liver disease. She walks us through the transplant evaluation process, the emotional challenges of waiting, and the moment she learned she was number one on the transplant list.

We talk about recovery after surgery, including time spent in the surgical ICU, being on oxygen for months, and learning to manage lifelong medications. Madison also opens up about the mental health side of transplantation and how working with a transplant-focused psychiatrist helped her navigate life after surgery.

Now thriving, Madison works as a program coordinator at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center — the same hospital where she received her transplant. She’s currently pursuing her second master’s degree and gives back through volunteer work with the Humane Society and Lifeline of Ohio.

This episode is an honest and hopeful conversation about resilience, gratitude, and finding purpose after receiving the gift of life.

Let’s Stay Connected:

Email: giftoflifepodcast@gmail.com

Website: www.giftoflifepodcast.com

Facebook: Gift of Life – The Organ Transplant Podcast

Listen & Share: https://lnk.to/GiftofLife

BJ Odom’s book

More Parts Than A Chicken Nugget

Grab your copy today: https://a.co/d/gNgC9jO

Available in paperback & eBook!

If this episode touched your heart, help us spread the message:

Subscribe and leave a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platforms.

Share this episode with family and friends. Together, we’re raising awareness, honoring donors, and celebrating new beginnings. Thank you for being part of our life-giving community.

Last week, we introduced you to heart transplant recipient Bill Barschaw and his powerful journey of survival.

This week, we continue that story through the eyes of his wife and caregiver, Val Barschaw.

After walking beside Bill through his heart transplant and witnessing the realities of hospital life firsthand, Val felt called to share what she learned — not just for patients, but for families and caregivers navigating the healthcare system. That experience inspired her to write the book:

Surviving the Hospital: Six Secrets Every Patient Should Know

In this episode, Val shares:

• What it truly means to walk the transplant journey as a caregiver

• The emotional toll families experience during long hospital stays

• The importance of patient advocacy

• How knowledge can empower patients and caregivers during medical crises

This is a meaningful, eye-opening conversation that honors caregivers and highlights the vital role they play in every transplant story.

Email: giftoflifepodcast@gmail.com

Website: www.giftoflifepodcast.com

Facebook: Gift of Life – The Organ Transplant Podcast

Listen & Share: https://lnk.to/GiftofLife

More Parts Than A Chicken Nugget

Grab your copy today: https://a.co/d/gNgC9jO

Available in paperback & eBook

If this episode touched your heart:

Subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and share this episode with family and friends.

Together, we’re raising awareness, honoring donors, celebrating caregivers, and sharing hope.

Follow Val

Blog about humor benefits:
https://gnanow.org/blogs/why-every-patient-advocate-should-pack-a-humor-toolkit-the-science-backed-strategy-that-s-transformi.html

Blog about preparation:
https://gnanow.org/blogs/take-control-of-your-surgery-why-proper-preparation-can-change-everything.html

Book purchase is anywhere books are sold, Amazon, B&N, etc and my site:
https://hospitaltohealth.com/products-list

website: hospitaltohealth.com

In this powerful conversation, we sit down with transplant recipient Bill Barschaw as he takes us back to the moment his life changed forever. What began as a routine medical visit unfolded into a diagnosis that would reshape his future — and ultimately lead to a life-saving heart transplant.

Bill shares how a routine checkup in 1990 led his primary doctor to refer him to a cardiologist — a decision that would alter the course of his life.

His cardiologist recommended a right heart catheterization to get a deeper look at his heart function. That test brought questions — and then answers.

After the cath, Bill was diagnosed with idiopathic viral cardiomyopathy — a condition that weakened his heart muscle for reasons doctors couldn’t completely explain.

With medications, Bill managed his condition for years. Though the road was far from smooth, the treatments kept him going and living life as fully as possible.

Bill recounts how, as his condition progressed, he eventually became a candidate for a heart transplant. Thirty-five years ago, he received a new heart — a moment that gave him renewed life and hope.

This story is a testament to:

• The importance of perseverance — even when the diagnosis is uncertain.

• The power of medical testing to uncover hidden conditions.

• The gift of transplantation in rewriting the future.

Whether you’re a transplant patient, a caregiver, or someone seeking hope through hardship, Bill’s voice brings encouragement and clarity to the journey.

Next week we introduce you to his wife Val Barschaw who has written a book "Surviving the Hospital Six Secrets Every Patient Should Know”

What idiopathic viral cardiomyopathy is — and why early diagnosis matters

How a right heart cath can change the course of care

The emotional and physical journey toward transplant

The impact of gratitude and community in the organ transplant world.

Let’s Stay Connected:

Email: giftoflifepodcast@gmail.com

Website: www.giftoflifepodcast.com

Facebook: Gift of Life – The Organ Transplant Podcast

Listen & Share: https://lnk.to/GiftofLife

BJ Odom’s book

More Parts Than A Chicken Nugget

Available in paperback & eBook!

If this episode touched your heart, help us spread the message:

Subscribe and leave a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platforms.

Share this episode with family and friends. Together, we’re raising awareness, honoring donors, and celebrating new beginnings. Thank you for being part of our life-giving community.

In this deeply moving episode, we meet Caroline Mozare, a courageous young woman whose life changed forever after years of being undiagnosed—until her body could no longer fight on its own.

What began as unanswered questions and quiet suffering led Caroline to the hospital, where she learned the unthinkable: she needed a liver transplant to survive. As her condition rapidly declined, Caroline spent many critical days unconscious, unaware of how close she came to losing her life. During that time, her husband stood in the gap—making impossible decisions, praying for a miracle, and later becoming the voice who would gently tell her everything that happened while she was gone.

Caroline’s story is raw, real, and profoundly human. She opens up about the physical pain, the emotional toll, and the silent strength it took to endure what no one should have to face—especially at such a young age. This episode is not just about transplant; it’s about love, resilience, faith, and the unbreakable bond between two people walking through the darkest days together.

This is a story that will stay with you—one that reminds us how fragile life can be, how powerful hope is, and how lifesaving the gift of organ donation truly is.

Email: giftoflifepodcast@gmail.com

Website: www.giftoflifepodcast.com

Facebook: Gift of Life – The Organ Transplant Podcast

Listen & Share: https://lnk.to/GiftofLife

More Parts Than A Chicken Nugget

Grab your copy today: https://a.co/d/gNgC9jO

Available in paperback & eBook

If this episode touched your heart, please help us spread the message:

• Subscribe and leave a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platform

• Share this episode with family and friends

Together, we are raising awareness, honoring donors, and celebrating new beginnings.

Thank you for being part of our life-giving community

Welcome to Episode 92 of Gift of Life – The Organ Transplant Podcast.

This week, we share the powerful and faith-filled story of Michael Adams, a double lung transplant recipient whose life has been defined by perseverance, courage, and gratitude.

Michael’s journey began as a young boy diagnosed with severe asthma. Years later, doctors discovered the true cause — cystic fibrosis — a diagnosis that explained the countless hospital stays, relentless treatments, and repeated brushes with death that followed. His childhood and adult life were marked by oxygen tanks, infections, and moments when breathing itself felt like an impossible task.

By the age of 39, Michael’s condition had reached a breaking point. At one point, he was read his last rites — a moment no family ever expects, and no patient ever forgets. Yet, in the midst of that darkness, hope arrived through the miracle of transplantation.

Thanks to the gift of life and the generosity of an organ donor, Michael received a double lung transplant — a moment that changed everything.

Today, Michael is breathing freely on his own — something he once could only dream about. In this episode, he opens up about the fear, the faith, the waiting, and the overwhelming gratitude that comes with receiving a second chance at life. His story is a testament to the power of organ donation and the incredible resilience of the human spirit.

This is more than a transplant story — it’s a reminder that miracles happen, hope endures, and every breath is a gift.

Email: giftoflifepodcast@gmail.com

Website: www.giftoflifepodcast.com

Facebook: Gift of Life – The Organ Transplant Podcast

Listen & Share: https://lnk.to/GiftofLife

More Parts Than A Chicken Nugget

Grab your copy today: https://a.co/d/gNgC9jO

Available in paperback & eBook

If this episode touched your heart, please help us spread the message:

• Subscribe and leave a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platform

• Share this episode with family and friends

Together, we are raising awareness, honoring donors, and celebrating new beginnings.

Thank you for being part of our life-giving community.