[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 121 (Tuesday, July 18, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1012-E1013]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  TRIBUTE TO STEVE AND HEATHER WINFREE

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. JOHN J. DUNCAN, JR.

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 18, 2017

  Mr. DUNCAN of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, heroes come into lives in 
different ways through the challenges people face during their lives.
  A very special hero from my district came up with a heartwarming way 
to share her choice to be an organ donor for her husband who has been 
suffering from kidney disease for 14 years.
  Heather Winfree took her husband's love for baseball and used it as a 
way to share the good news that she was a donor match.
  Because of his diagnosis as a teen, Steve Winfree was never able to 
achieve his dream of playing college baseball.
  Steve collects baseball cards on a regular basis, but the most rare 
card he has ever received is a custom Topps card that Heather designed 
for him.
  It included Steve's picture and text on the back that read ``Steve 
will be a rookie recipient at Vanderbilt Transplant Center where his 
wife, Heather, will be pitching a new kidney to him.''
  Because of Heather's heroic efforts to save the life of her husband, 
he could receive the transplant as soon as the end of July this year.
  I am proud to see people from my district like Heather show us the 
true meaning of love while people like Steve show us what perseverance 
looks like.
  Please join me in wishing them the best as they both undergo surgery 
in the near future.
  I would like to include in the Record the following story about the 
Winfrees from CBS News.

                     [From CBS News, July 11, 2017]

Man Learns Wife Is Kidney Transplant Match From a Custom-made Baseball 
                                  Card

                           (By Jennifer Earl)

       Steve Winfree was excited to rip open up a brand new pack 
     of Topps baseball cards. It has become a family tradition 
     over the years. But this time, as he shuffled through the 
     deck, he spotted something unusual--his very own playing 
     card.
       As he read the stats on the back, Winfree, who has been 
     suffering from kidney disease for the past 14 years, broke 
     down in tears.
       ``What the heck?'' he asked, as his wife, Heather, sat 
     beside him.

[[Page E1013]]

       ``What is it?'' Heather asked, grinning.
       Winfree began to read out loud: ``Steve has had a lot on 
     his plate. With his health issues, he's been striking out a 
     lot. He was not sure how he was going to wind up,'' the 
     card's bio said. ``His wife, Heather, thinks he's a great 
     catch so she's just dying to go to bat for him. Now Steve 
     will be a rookie recipient.''
       It was at that moment, Winfree realized his wife was giving 
     him the best gift of all--a new kidney, and a whole new life.
       Heather Winfree surprised her husband, Steve, with his very 
     own Topps playing card.
       Heather had been tested to see if she could be a match a 
     week earlier. Before she even received the results, she came 
     up with the creative way to share the good news.
       ``I had already started planning how I was going to tell 
     him before I knew I was a match,'' Heather told CBS News. ``I 
     never considered I wouldn't be a match. I guess I had to have 
     faith I was going to be a match--that was keeping my hope 
     alive.''
       Steve Winfree was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease at 
     the age of 18. He was getting ready to play college 
     basketball when doctors discovered he had high blood pressure 
     during a pre-season physical.
       After running more tests, Winfree was told he only had 50 
     percent kidney function. His dreams of playing college ball 
     were over.
       ``He's been through a lot,'' Heather said. ``Kidney disease 
     is really hard. It's been really hard.''
       Since the couple met seven years ago, he's developed severe 
     gout, arthritis, undergone several surgeries and had to have 
     a toe amputated. He's been on dialysis for over a year.
       ``A year ago, they put a port in his chest and he ended up 
     going into septic shock,'' Heather added. ``He spent seven 
     days in the intensive care unit. I can't tell you what that 
     grief felt like, feeling like I was going to lose my 
     husband.''
       Steve Winfree is told his wife is a perfect match for a 
     kidney transplant, and he could have surgery as early as the 
     end of July.
       So when doctors at Vanderbilt University Medical Center 
     told Winfree he was eligible to get onto the transplant list 
     in late June, Heather jumped at the opportunity to offer 
     herself up as a living kidney donor.
       ``I said, `I want to expedite this. I want to help my 
     husband get better,' '' she explained.
       Her wish came true when doctors confirmed the match. If 
     everything goes well, Winfree could have surgery by the end 
     of the month.
       ``Here I am, I have two kidneys and he needs one--why 
     wouldn't I improve his quality of life?'' Heather said. ``For 
     14 years of his life he's been battling this disease and 
     finally we have the relief of knowing the end is on the 
     horizon. We've got hope.''

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