Matthew Moore is a 39-year-old foster dad from Shallotte, North Carolina. Prior to June of this year, he had no knowledge of his heart problems and has recently learned he must undergo a heart transplant.

On June 9, 2021, Matthew presented to the emergency room after noticing he was having shortness of breath and a sudden onset of swelling in his legs and feet. An echocardiogram revealed his heart pumping function was only 20-25%, a third of what it should be. The next day a heart catheterization was performed and four of his coronary arteries were found to have blockages of 70% or greater.

Due to the degree of his heart failure and his need for coronary bypass surgery, the small hospital near his home thought it would be in his best interest to transfer him to Duke University Hospital in Durham, North Carolina.

He arrived at Duke on June 15th and a series of tests needed to prepare for a complicated bypass surgery began right away. The next day he and his mother were enjoying watching television in his room when suddenly, Matthew suffered a massive heart attack and went into cardiac arrest. For the next 45 minutes, he received high quality CPR and was shocked 16 times with the defibrillator. He was rushed to the operating room, and thankfully the surgeons were able to stabilize him using a temporary heart and lung machine. The week to follow was filled with more trips to the operating room to place a stent and close his chest. Meanwhile, Matthew had 5 additional episodes of ventricular tachycardia requiring the use of the defibrillator to shock him back into a normal heart rhythm.

The surgeons were quick to perform additional testing and they determined the only long-term solution for Matthew will be a heart transplant. Both the right and left ventricles were failing at a rapid rate. In the interim, a device was placed that provides functional support to the heart and will allow his body time to recover and prepare him for transplantation.

The past month has not only been traumatic for Matthew, his wife Rachel, and their 3-year-old son, Marshall, who arrived to them at 45 days old, made possible through foster care. For years, the two of them had dreamed of being parents and after discussing the idea one night, the process of becoming licensed foster parents seemed to fall into place. Marshall had been their only placement until they were asked to care for a 3-month-old baby girl this past April. Understandably, the little girl had to be placed with another family as Rachel has not left Matthew’s side since this journey began. She has been unable to work, and their monthly income has come to a halt. As you can imagine, the expenses for Rachel to be able to stay at Duke with Matthew, as well as continued monthly bills at their home, is causing quite a financial hardship on the family.

They are truly blessed with a very supportive extended family who have been able to care for Marshall during this crucial time. They would like to extend their immense gratitude to their families and to all their friends and loved ones who have been praying and keeping up with updates posted to Facebook.

If you are able to contribute towards supporting them in their time of need, please do so. This will be a long journey and Matthew will most likely be hospitalized until a new heart is found. If a monetary donation is not feasible, your prayers are truly appreciated. Rachel’s motto from the beginning has been to Keep Faith, Pray and Wait. Keep Faith that God will provide a way, Pray for peace and understanding that God has a plan...... And Wait for HIM to show us the path he has for the rest of Matthew's life.

“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer” Romans 12:12