Support Amy's Heart & Liver Transplant Journey

Help Amy Get Life-Saving Heart and Liver Transplants

Hey everyone! We need your help supporting Amy, a wonderful 42-year-old who's facing some serious health challenges.

Amy was born with a rare heart condition that basically means she only has half a working heart. The medical term is Hypoplastic Right Heart Syndrome, where one of her heart valves (the tricuspid valve) never formed before birth. This meant her right ventricle - one of the heart's main pumping chambers - couldn't develop properly.

As a kid, Amy had several major surgeries to help her heart work better. Her first open-heart surgery was when she was just 16 months old, and she had another big operation called a Fontan procedure at age 4. Back then, doctors thought kids with her condition might only live into their late teens or early twenties. Amy has beaten those odds, but now she needs our help.

Throughout her life, Amy has been a regular at top hospitals like the University of Minnesota and Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. She's been on various heart medications and had lots of procedures to keep her going. In 2008, doctors discovered that the surgery she had as a child (the Fontan) had caused liver problems, leading to cirrhosis.

Things got tough in 2024. Amy's heart started beating irregularly, and despite treatments, she kept having to be rushed to the hospital for emergency procedures to shock her heart back into rhythm. In September, she ended up in intensive care and had to be airlifted to Mayo Clinic. The doctors discovered that her childhood surgery was starting to fail, making her heart weaker. They tried to find other surgical options, but the risks were just too high. Now, Amy's on a medication called Amiodarone to control her heart rhythm, though it can have some rough side effects on her other organs.

The bottom line? Amy needs both a heart and liver transplant. While she and her husband Cory have managed her medical expenses until now, the costs are becoming overwhelming:

- A heart transplant costs around $1.6 million

- A liver transplant costs about $900,000

- After the transplants, she'll need about $2,500 per month just for anti-rejection medications

- Plus there are ongoing costs for medical co-pays, deductibles, travel, food, and lodging

Despite everything she's going through, Amy stays positive and loves spending time with her family, especially her nephews and niece. She's got quite the mini-farm at home with a pet pig named Mister Simmons, plus cats, dogs, goats, and chickens! She's also a big fan of UW Men's Basketball and the Green Bay Packers.

How You Can Help:

1. Donate directly through this GoFundMe

2. Share her story with others who might be able to help

3. Follow her Facebook page for updates on her journey (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571754882166)

We're so grateful for any help you can give. Even small donations add up and make a huge difference!

With heartfelt thanks,

Amy's Family:

- Dawn and Don Warnke (Parents)

- Lindsay and Brian Reuter (Sister and Brother-in-law)

- Andy North and Amelia Crabtree (Brother and Sister-in-law)

- Amy North and Cory Meinholz