ST. MARTINS, Mo. - Chad Nierman was able to walk the steep Ozark slope in his backyard to his barn this winter without stopping to catch his breath.
The St. Martins 40-something received a none-too-soon heart transplant in September.
His pre-teen son Zane was quick to point out that his dad's original heart was operating at 8 percent at the time of the surgery.
"His heart was way worse than they ever thought when they took it out," Zane said.
Chad's old heart was donated to research, and Zane created a science fair project this winter about heart health.
Although Chad does not prefer the "limelight," he said he is grateful for the attention and support from family, friends and the community, especially the two upcoming fundraisers, which will help offset the accumulating costs that come with travel and substantial health care.
His wife, Wanda, said she hopes more people will learn about and ultimately choose organ donation. One person's donation could save 116 people, she said.
"There are so many people out there waiting for organs. Many die before they're able to get one," Wanda said.
Chad's struggle with his health began in 2001. Before that, he was a strong and healthy 20-something working in concrete construction and lawn service.
Somehow, he picked up a staph infection, which attacked his heart valves. At one point, he was given a 50/50 survival chance. But a pacemaker from Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis did the trick.
However, a few weeks later, he was back in the hospital for a rare reaction to the post-surgery antibiotics, causing a kidney infection.
Eventually, he was sent home, but weaker.
"I could never do that kind of labor again," Chad said. "It was several years before I was back to work, and not labor intensive."
While not sick, he often was out of breath.
His heart felt "like it doesn't want to do anything for you," he described.
Then in 2006, he was cutting hay on a hot summer day when he suffered a minor stroke.
As many times before, the doctors told him "you shouldn't do what you're doing," Wanda said.
But the doctors also seemed amazed, saying "someone in his condition shouldn't be able to do more than sit."
His stamina was fading. He was placed on the transplant list in January 2011, but he was "too well" to be in the "urgent" status.
By April 2013, he had to quit his part-time work. Walking that backyard hill would wear him out, and he had to stay indoors during the heat of summer days.
A Hickman port and other medical advances gave him a boost in the summer of 2013, but he was soon headed downhill again.
This time, he was moved up in priority on the transplant list. The news was both "happy and scary at the same time," Wanda said.
They didn't wait long. The family of a St. Louis area male aged 16-26 donated their loved one's organs.
The healthy, new heart "was working too well for Chad's body to catch up" at first, Wanda said. That left him on a bypass machine longer than preferred, causing his kidneys to begin to shut down.
As he acclimated to his new heart in September, he received dialysis through November. And he expects to see a kidney transplant doctor in the future.
"You take what you can get," Wanda said of the troubles and triumphs.
In recent months, his heart biopsies have gone well and he has more strength and endurance than he has in years.
"I feel pretty good," Chad said, though his chest is still sore from "being split open a second time."
He works out at Capital Region's Healthplex three days a week, where they can monitor and respond if something doesn't look right.
If all goes well, he may be "released" in October, and hopes to return to his employer, GBH Builders/Roy Scheperle Construction.
"It's been so long, I kind of forgot what it was like to do stuff," Chad said. "It may be a while, but I would like to get back to work.
"I want to do everything I can; I don't want to set a limit."
Zane is looking forward to hunting with his father again. But Wanda has remained a little worried about his activity.
"I'm glad to see what he's able to do," she added.
Chad happily described a recent morning when he was checking fences and a donkey was about to get loose. With his new heart, he was able to run in front of it to head it off.
"Before, I would have just watched him go," he said.
Fundraisers for the Nierman family
A trivia night FUNdraiser benefit will begin at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at St. Martin Catholic Church undercroft. Silent auction items include a Remington Express Super Magnum 12-gauge Mossy Oak Camo Shotgun, a women's Smith and Wesson Bodyguard .380 with laser sight conceal-and-carry handgun, St. Louis Cardinals baseball tickets and a handmade bed. Tables of eight are $120 or $15 per person.
An American Red Cross Blood Drive will be open 7:30-11:30 a.m. March 15 at St. Martin's Church cafeteria. Nierman's transplant required 21 pints of blood. But this event, promoted by his son, Zane, through the St. Martins School, hopes to collect 50 pints in Nierman's honor.
Email [email protected] or call 573-690-6927 for pre-registration or more information.