“May 5th, 2018, I had a heart transplant. I was on the list for 3 years.”
For Tracy Gary, the heart transplant was lifesaving and life-changing, giving him a future he wasn’t sure he’d have.
“After I had my transplant, I asked my girlfriend to marry me, so we got married. I got to witness four grandchildren being born. It's wonderful.”
Gary’s wife Holly is also a liver recipient.
Through weeks of hospital recovery to weeks or even months of monitoring, locating affordable, long-term housing for families near hospitals can be challenging.
The couple soon founded the Transplant House of West Michigan, a nonprofit housing facility for transplant patients and their families.
“It's nice to know that our dream is actually helping people out like we thought it would.
Last year, we had a total of 57 people stay, different stays. We've saved people $260,000 last year."
Located on Leonard Street NE in Grand Rapids, the house is minutes from the area’s hospitals and offers low-cost housing for transplant families.
“It's very homey. Everybody who stayed there has loved it. They like the vibe because it's not just a place to stay. It's more of a support group. Everybody there is going through the exact same thing.”
Gary notes there are 120,000 people on the national transplant list, with nearly 2,800 in Michigan, urging everyone to register as a donor through the Secretary of State or through healthcare portals like Corewell Health's MyChart, calling it "the most precious gift you can give."
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