Heart transplant recipient grateful for ‘gift of life’

For Rich Grehl, Dec. 20 is his “Rebirth Day.”

That is when the Hewitt resident received a new heart.

He had his third heart attack Nov. 4, followed by an eight-week hospital stay before the life-saving surgery.

Grehl, 63, had his first heart attack in 2012 and a second in 2021, neither of which resulted in permanent damage.

Everything changed with his third heart attack, which caused enough damage to prompt doctors at Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern, N.Y., to deem the situation extremely serious.

After a transfer to Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, N.Y., on Nov. 11, Grehl began his transplant journey.

“As the weeks went by at Westchester Med, there were more unknowns and uncertainties,” he said. “The cardiology team said that more surgeries, rehabilitation, medication along with external life support would not lead to recovery.

“Finally, they presented the option of going home with bleak prospects or putting me on the heart transplant list. It took about two seconds for me to decide on a heart transplant.”

In part because of his overall good health and his physiological and psychological make-up, the expected wait of months turned out to be less than two weeks for a compatible heart.

After a five-hour surgery Dec. 20, Grehl got a new heart and, as he gratefully declares, his “new gift of life.”

‘They saved my life’

Grehl moved to West Milford in the fall of 2019 after years of living in Rockland County, N.Y. He grew up in Flushing, Queens.

He has two adult children - Chris, 32, of West Nyack, N.Y., and Victoria, 35, of Seattle and three grandchildren. His 93-year-old father, Frank, who lives at Cedar Crest in Pequannock; sister, Barbara, of West Milford; and girlfriend, Linda Costa of West Nyack, also have been an essential part of his support team.

“I can’t say enough about the people in my life who have traveled down this road with me,” he said. “They are exceptional, including the medical professionals who continue to work with me as well as my friends and neighbors. I am extremely grateful to all.

“Then there are the West Milford Police, Fire Department, and the Upper Greenwood Lake Volunteer Ambulance Corps and EMTs. The whole experience was extremely challenging logistically and more so. They saved my life.”

As Grehl describes the scene, his third heart attack occurred on the third floor of his home.

Costa immediately called 911 and West Milford police officers arrived in minutes, followed by the emergency medical technicians (EMTs).

Protocol calls for a heart attack victim to lie flat, but first-responders could not carry him down the home’s spiral stairway.

The solution: The Fire Department hoisted a ladder to the third-floor window, moved him out the window strapped on a flat board, then lowered him to ground level - a 1.5-hour process before the ambulance ride to Good Samaritan Hospital.

A self-described pragmatist, Grehl was calm and steady throughout and even joked at times. He credited the pragmatism to his father’s exampe and his engineering and professional business training.

A graduate of Manhattan College with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, he was a career procurement executive for organizations including the Indian Point nuclear plant, Con Edison (also as an energy trader), the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals. He retired in May 2022.

10-day wait

“While in the hospital, I was not getting any better,” Grehl said. “When someone comes to you with the transplant option, the only option, and says you can have a longer life and a good life, it is a beautiful thing. For me, the most difficult part was knowing that someone’s life would have to end for me to get a new heart.

“My name was added to a heart transplant list. Working in my favor was my A+ universal blood type and not having antibodies that might reject a new heart. A negative was my height, 6 foot 3 inches. That means finding a less available heart that could handle my height.

“Anticipating a longer waiting time, a compatible heart became available in 10 days. I still get emotional about that.”

Grehl woke from surgery and sedation after 11 hours and recalls a nurse smiling and telling him that he had a new heart, and everything went great.

Not yet able to speak, he was elated and joyful. “I was alive, reborn. I am grateful to my medical team and to my donor, who remains unknown to me.”

Soon after that, he reunited with his family and girlfriend.

Costa cites Grehl’s amazingly strong will to live.

“Rich spent more than eight weeks in hospitals, bedridden with chest tubes, ongoing tests and not knowing what was ahead for him,” she said. “Everyone has bad moments, but Rich is resilient and positive, optimistic, and strong.

“No one expected a heart transplant. We thought he would recover as with the other heart attacks. The cardiologist advised otherwise, suggesting a new heart as the best option. Throughout Rich was steady and logical. I was the emotional one who also was his best patient advocate when he could not be his own.”

Grehl’s son, Chris, has a unique perspective as an EMT with the Nanuet Ambulance Corps, starting when he was 18. He also serves as a volunteer firefighter.

“Dad never went down the rabbit hole,” said Chris, who with his wife, Julianne, are parents to 1-year-old daughter, Bria. “He is a positive force, never dreading what could come, never thinking about not getting better, never self-occupied. He knew, too, that he had a trusted support team. When he decided on a transplant, dad was relieved and ready - finally a real solution.”

Emotional homecoming

After surgery, Grehl remained in the hospital for 10 days. In bed for his entire hospital stay, his body atrophied tremendously and he lost 45 pounds.

Homecoming to his Greenwood Lake community in Hewitt was Dec. 30, just before New Year’s Eve.

Chris brought his father home in a standard minivan, making sure that he was safe and comfortable in the back seat - Grehl even took a brief nap.

“Being an EMT, I was confident in properly handling dad on the trip home,” he said. “He was weak yet eager to get home. Like dad and granddad, I am calm, non-emotional and pragmatic. The situation was dealt with and the problem fixed. Now dad was going home.

When he arrived him, Grehl was surprised and, admittedly, emotional. Greeting him were family, friends and neighbors, along with cheers, a decorated lawn, “welcome home” signs, balloons and more.

“The homecoming was a total surprise and a bit overwhelming,” he said. “I shed a few tears while leaning on the van, my legs became even weaker and I had to sit down, and thankfully my new heart took it all in. No problem at all.

“Linda and my neighbors had taken care of the house, even buying reclining chairs and other items to ensure I was all set. They even pulled my boat dock out of the water ahead of winter.

“My family, friends and neighbors and the Hewitt, the Greenwood Lake and West Milford community are unbelievable, simply the best.”

Ongoing care

Grehl explains that with a new heart comes a whole transplant team rooting for your survival and giving you every opportunity to succeed, from medication to guidance on exercise and diet to recovery protocols.

He is in constant communication with his medical team and advisers, including rehabilitation specialists at Helen Hayes Hospital in West Haverstraw, N.Y.

He undergoes regular exams, including heart biopsies to prevent rejection, and must avoid harmful bacteria because of his medication, which has brought on diabetes.

“Hey, I’m alive and want to stay alive,” he said. “These are all things I can live with.”

He offers practical advice to anyone who may have to face the same decision.

“Given the choice to have months to live or to get a transplant for a chance of a longer life is an easy decision. Thank goodness for medical science and doctors who can assess the critical junctures and make determinations for informed decisions.

“The risks are there. Not every transplant is successful. Donors may be difficult to come by. It is expensive, both the procedure and life-long after care. And the criteria for getting a transplant are more than medical as one must have the right demeanor, character, positive attitude and support network – all things the medical staff and patient need to consider.

“You want to be positive and listen to the doctors. Do not overly worry or speculate. Take each challenge like each day as it comes. And find joy and look ahead to a happy, fun and healthy life.”

Grehl looks forward to spending quality time with family and friends and navigating his boat on Greenwood Lake.

He and Costa want to return to riding in his Mini Cooper convertible and to their worldwide travel adventures as soon as possible.

3,000 waiting

Westchester Medical Center averages 40 to 50 heart transplants annually. More than 2,000 people undergo heart transplants each year in the United States.

Nearly 3,000 remain on wait lists and up to 20 percent of those will die while waiting.

The Mayo Clinic notes that worldwide, the overall survival rate for heart transplant patients is about 90 percent after one year and about 80 percent after five years for adults.

“How amazing is it that people can live longer with transplants and that everyone has the opportunity to be a donor,” Chris Grehl said. “I am a registered organ donor as are so many of my family and friends. An organ donor gives the gift of life.”

By rule and practice, donor identities are not disclosed to recipients or publicly. Through an established process managed by hospitals and individual states, an organ recipient may request to meet a donor’s family. Rich Grehl has made a request to meet his donor’s family.

“My meeting request has been accepted by my donor’s family, and we are engaging with Live on NY.org, the New York state donor registration agency, to arrange a place and date,” he said.

“Meeting the family is important to me. They lost a family member. I am a benefactor of that loss, someone who saved my life. I want to have more decades to enjoy life, even living as long as dad, thanks to that person. I am blessed. Whoever you are, I am forever grateful.”