Bradley Barlish

April 29, 2026 – Brad Barlish has lived with a congenital heart defect his entire life, Transposition of the Great Arteries. He is 55 years old and has had numerous procedures to help him live including an open-heart surgery called a Mustard operation as well as a Mustard repair. Over the past couple of years, living with CHD has become a struggle for Brad, leading to multiple hospital stays, procedures and devices to monitor and/or help his condition. These devices include a 3 lead pacemaker/defibrillator, a CardioMEMS to monitor pressures, and a CCM (Cardiac Contractility Modulation device).

When Brad became septic in February 2025, everything changed and it became an intense struggle to keep him alive. He was airlifted to Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston on February 9, 2025 where he was part of the Adult Congenital Heart group. He was on ECMO twice in 3 months, had numerous procedures including heart caths and an ablation. He was placed on hemodialysis and eventually home peritoneal dialysis. He had issues with fluid retention, had heart failure and afib issues, and he even had a stroke. Through it all, he amazed his doctors, nurses and care team because he kept saying, “Never give up, never surrender.” He attributes his survival to God’s answered prayers and the amazing medical team, doctors and nurses, who all told him he was a walking talking miracle.

Brad is hoping to receive a heart and kidney transplant to get back his normal life, enjoying spending as much time with family as possible and boasting about his grandkids to anyone who will listen. He loves being outdoors and fixing things. To receive a transplant, Brad will have to be closer to Houston for a time, prompting the need for fundraising. We are raising money for the nonprofit Help Hope Live to fund uninsured medical expenses associated with a transplant. We chose to fundraise with Help Hope Live in part because donations are tax deductible for contributors and will only be used to cover medical and related expenses including lodging, parking and daily expenses while there.

Please donate to Help Hope Live in Brad’s honor today, and ask your friends and family to give, too! We would love to plan some fundraisers in Brad’s honor, too, so if you can help with that, please contact his wife, Becky, at [email protected]. Thank you for your generous support!