Surgery was completed in the early hours of September 17, 2025—my second second chance at life. Surprisingly, it would be the first of eight major surgeries in the 30 days that followed.

What brought me to that operating table was four and a half years of battling chronic rejection. In the final months leading up to surgery, even the smallest tasks left me fighting for breath. The weight of each day became harder to carry, leading me to the decision to move forward with a redo lung transplant.

I didn’t realize at the time that I would be climbing many of the same mountains I had faced before, along with new ones I never expected. Blood clots, ECMO, a tracheotomy, a pulmonary embolism, a thoracotomy, and a lobectomy were not part of the plan. Yet the hardest part of it all for me was the mental toll.

But time and healing have a way of changing how you feel.

Today, I’m deeply grateful for the improvements that have come with my new lungs. I can talk while I’m walking, take the stairs without stopping to catch my breath, and make the bed without needing a break. These things may seem small, but for someone living with lung disease, they represent barriers broken. And they’re only the beginning. I’m stronger now. My workouts are improving, my walks are faster, and I’m taking on hills that once felt impossible. As my healing continues, I look forward to building on this progress and seeing just how much more is possible.

There is so much more I want to share, and I will in time. For now, I’m still gathering the pieces—reflecting, processing, and making sense of all that has happened. When I do tell my story, I want it to serve you more than it centers on me.

Receiving the gift of life once is an incredible blessing. Receiving it twice feels beyond words. Two selfless individuals gave literal pieces of themselves so that others could live, and I was chosen to be one of the recipients—twice.

I’m truly blessed beyond measure!

The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, 
along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
1 Timothy 1:14

To read the story about my first transplant,
check out my book, Breathing in the Unexpected.