![A decorative newsprint graphic.](https://ik.imagekit.io/si8wvxbpwm/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/1-2.png)
Tashawna Shepard
![Heart transplant candidate Tashawna Shepard is interviewed by FOX Orlando. The headline reads Mother Needs Heart Transplant. Tashawna has brown skin, brown eyes, a bright red shirt, and black hair pulled up into a bun.](https://ik.imagekit.io/si8wvxbpwm/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/FOX3.jpg)
“Life had just sent our family a blessing…It hurts to sit and wonder if you are going to be able to see any of your children grow up.”
38-year-old Tashawna Shepard had just given birth to her first baby boy – her fifth child – in September 2023. Just two weeks after his birth, she received shocking news: she was living with end-stage heart failure.
![Heart transplant candidate Tashawna Shepard is interviewed by FOX Orlando. The headline reads FOX 35 Kelsie Cairns, which is the name of the reporter. Kelsie is standing in front of a large screen displaying a photo of Tashawna. Kelsie has light skin, shoulder-length blonde hair, and a lemon-yellow formal dress. In the photo behind her, lying in a hospital bed in a hospital gown,with tubes connected to her nose and arms, Tashawna has brown skin, brown eyes, and black hair pulled up into a bun.](https://ik.imagekit.io/si8wvxbpwm/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/FOX1.jpg)
Extreme pain in her back led her to seek medical care, which resulted in her postpartum cardiomyopathy diagnosis.
A heart transplant will change her life, but the financial burden is significant, topping $1.6 million before insurance. That’s why she turned to Help Hope Live for trusted medical fundraising.
![Heart transplant candidate Tashawna Shepard is interviewed by FOX Orlando. The headline reads FOX 35 Kelsie Cairns, which is the name of the reporter. Lying in a hospital bed in a hospital gown, looking tired but with a big smile, Tashawna has brown skin, brown eyes, and black hair pulled up into a bun.](https://ik.imagekit.io/si8wvxbpwm/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/FOX2.jpg)