For 15 years, Gift of Life Howie’s House has been a home away from home for transplant families through every season of their journey.
Since opening, the House has provided more than 120,000 nights of lodging, giving thousands of families a place to find comfort, celebrate milestones, and navigate the challenges of transplant care. While some families stay for only a few nights, others return over months or even years.
For the Guerin family, the House has been a home away from home for nearly a decade.
An Uncertain Start
When Valerie Guerin was just 20 weeks pregnant, she and her husband, Mark, learned that their baby girl, Cora, had Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS), a serious heart condition in which the left side of the heart does not develop properly.
After Cora was born, she underwent multiple life-sustaining surgeries allowing her to grow up and enjoy her childhood.
When she was 10, however, her heart began to fail. Her doctors determined that she would need a heart transplant to survive.
In the summer of 2016, Cora was placed on the transplant waiting list. Just a few months later, the family received the call they had been waiting for: a donor heart was available. Cora received her life-saving transplant at age 11.
Keeping Family Close
Although Cora’s transplant was successful, complications required Mark and Valerie to remain at her bedside. They needed a place that Cora’s siblings, Aimee and Stephen, could remain close by and visit.
That’s when the family learned about Gift of Life Howie’s House.
The House allowed Cora’s siblings to stay nearby with other family, and gave them peace of mind during a time when life felt anything but normal.
“It meant a lot for me to take time with Stephen and Aimee having been away from them so much. The House allowed us to be a family as much as physically possible.” – Valerie
Two months after her transplant, Cora was discharged from the hospital and moved to the House, where she continued her recovery for another month before returning home.
During that first stay, the House offered more than a place to sleep. Meals prepared by volunteers meant they didn’t have to worry about cooking. Community spaces gave them opportunities to rest and to connect with other families.
“It allowed us to take breaks and regroup.” – Valerie
Seasons of Growth
When Cora first arrived, she remembers feeling lonely. But as the years passed, that changed.
“I felt pretty lonely at first, being the youngest patient there. But the activities there made it much easier. It also got better as I grew older and could relate more to the other patients there.” – Cora
The House became a place where Cora could find support, build relationships, and create memories alongside other families. For Valerie, those connections have become one of the most meaningful parts of their experience.
“Each of the interactions we’ve had in conversations with others who truly get it has helped us normalize and even look forward to our time at the House.”
Over nearly a decade, Valerie has formed lasting friendships with other guests. Those relationships have helped her and Cora stay positive through both good hospital visits and difficult ones.
A Constant Through Every Season
For transplant families, the journey doesn’t end with surgery. There can be milestones to celebrate, unexpected complications to navigate, and difficult news to process.
For Cora, there have been two pacemakers, kidney issues, a valve replacement, frequent follow-up visits and discussions about the possibility of another transplant.
Through it all, the House has remained a familiar place of comfort and calm.
“Coming back to the House over the past 10 years has been a huge part of our healing as a family and for Cora as an individual. Cora has had a significant number of challenges… There’s always a sense of calm and empathy when we go to the House which makes navigating this possible.” – Valerie
Today, Cora is 21 years old. She has graduated high school and is attending college – milestones made possible by her life-saving heart transplant and the gift of her donor hero.
Here for What Comes Next
10 years ago, they could not have known all the seasons that lay ahead: the uncertainty of waiting for a donor heart, the relief of transplant, the challenges of recovery, the joy of watching Cora grow up, and the unexpected medical challenges that would follow.
Cora and her family will soon celebrate 10 years since her life-saving heart transplant.
But throughout each season, Gift of Life Howie’s House has been there.
Cora’s story is just one of thousands.