Support Jon Baker's Heart Transplant Journey

Jon Baker was first diagnosed with heart failure (cardiomyopathy) in 2014. Thanks to the exceptional care at St. Luke’s Hospital, he’s been able to live a full and active life over the past decade.

Unfortunately, in March of 2025, Jon’s health began to decline. He experienced several episodes ventricular tachycardia (v-tach) – a dangerous heart rhythm where the heart beats 150 – 250 beats per minute reducing blood and oxygen flow to the body. These episodes, along with atrial spasms, led to multiple hospitalizations.

On June 25th, Jon suffered a “V-tach storm” — a series of relentless, life-threatening arrhythmias that ultimately caused him to go into full cardiac arrest. Local EMTs arrived within four minutes and performed life-saving CPR. That day, Jon endured 35 defibrillator shocks and multiple rounds of CPR before being stabilized and transferred to St. Luke’s Hospital, where he remains in Cardiac ICU.

Jon was officially added to the Transplant list as Tier 2 (high priority) on Friday, June 28th. He will remain under care in the Cardiac ICU until a donor heart becomes available, which could take days to weeks.

How you can help:

In the meantime, Jon, Allie and family begin to prepare for life post-transplant. To prepare for his at-home recovery, several home modifications and preventive measures are required to mitigate risk of infection due to immunosuppression driven by required anti-rejection medications.

This includes but is not limited to professional cleaning of HVAC duct work and moderate HVAC modifications to ensure proper air filtration. There are additional HEPA air purifier and home humidifier recommendations to help eliminate the risk of mold, as well as weekly pet grooming, minor home maintenance tasks and on-going professional cleaning.

While Jon and Allie are blessed to have health insurance that will cover most of his medical costs, he remains on short-term disability which impacts their home income and there are numerous incremental expenses inside and out of the hospital. In fact, the average cost of a heart transplant in the U.S. is $1.9M.

That’s why I’m creating this GoFundMe on behalf of Jon and Allie. They have a long journey ahead, but eagerly anticipate the full recovery of his health, which will give him more strength and mobility than he’s had since being diagnosed in 2014. This means he’ll be able to teach his son Cade how to ride a bike. He’ll be able to play catch without worrying about “triggering his heart”. He’ll be full of life, and heart.

If you are able to donate, every contribution – big or small – makes a difference. If you are unable to donate, please help spread the word and encourage friends and family to become organ donors.

While Jon remains stubborn as ever and both he and Allie are reluctant to ask for help, this is a critical time for their family, and your support will be deeply appreciated.