Our son Zack was diagnosed with restricted cardiomyopathy in December 2018 shortly after moving to Iowa from Kansas. We were told at that time Zack would need a new heart, medications were started and his heart remained stable through March 2021 when a cardiac catheterization revealed that his heart pressure was higher than at diagnosis. Zack was placed on the heart transplant list in Iowa.

Restricted cardiomyopathy is when the ventricles in the heart become very stiff making his heart unable to fill properly causing his heart to enlarge which causes the pressures in the heart and lungs to be affected. Restricted cardiomyopathy causes symptoms such as shortness of breath, activity intolerance, fatigue, dizziness, and can cause other organs to work harder. He is no longer able to play with his friends as he once did or play any sports.

Zack’s heart has continued to worsen with the pressures increasing. After a catheterization was completed in March 2022, we reached out to Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City. Zack was evaluated by the team at Children’s Mercy and has been dual listed in both Iowa and in Kansas City. We are awaiting his call for a new heart.

While we were in KC for our evaluation the team at Children’s Mercy shared with us about COTA and suggested we contact them for more information. The Children’s Organ Transplant Association will help us fundraise and also supply this website where we can add updates about Zack and 100% of any donated funds to COTA in honor of Zack will be used for transplant-related expenses. We will continue to add to Zack’s website throughout his journey.

A lot of our friends and family have asked if we need anything and it is very difficult to answer that question, but we know that others would like to help Zack somehow. We have been blessed with amazing friends and family! If you are interested, you can make a donation to COTA for Heart Warrior Zack, which is tax deductible as allowed by law, and COTA will make sure the gifts are used to assist with transplant-related expenses for years to come. Zack will have medical needs such as doctor visits, cauterizations, medications etc. for the remainder of his life.

Zack is an amazing young man and we are excited for his journey to a new heart!

The Children’s Organ Transplant Association (COTA) helps children and young adults who need a life-saving transplant by providing fundraising assistance and family support. COTA is the nation’s only fundraising organization solely dedicated to raising life-saving dollars in honor of transplant-needy children and young adults. 100% of each contribution made to COTA in honor of our patients helps meet transplant-related expenses. COTA’s services are free to our families, and gifts to COTA are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.