Manitoba man on his 3rd heart has lots of love for organ donors
'It pretty much happened overnight. He was fine one day and we were in the hospital the next night'
A Manitoba man whose life was saved — twice — by heart transplants is taking his message about organ donation on the road.
Two-time heart recipient Dean Omeniuk has put the organ transplant ribbon and the image of a heart rate on the side of a company truck and the decal for the Sign Up for Life website on the back "to bring awareness to people" who see it around Winnipeg and in surrounding communities.
"It was just a way that I thought I could give something back," he said.
Omeniuk, 47, required his first transplant in 1996, when he was 26.
He suddenly felt ill after a day at the beach with his family on the September long weekend that year.
His wife took him to the emergency room in Selkirk, where the couple was told Omeniuk's heart had been attacked by a virus and was swollen — and that he would die without a new heart.
"It pretty much happened overnight. He was fine one day and we were in the hospital the next night," Cathy Omeniuk said.
The news shocked Omeniuk, a general contractor and owner of D&D Excavating and Hauling who was rarely sick, other than the occasional flu or cold.
He didn't have a family doctor and hadn't been to one since he was 18.
"Honestly, I said, 'OK, that's impossible. I need to get back to work because I have a crew of guys out on the road,'" he said.
Omeniuk was told he wasn't going anywhere, other than on the transplant waiting list. He had surgery three months later, in December 1996.
"That was a giant relief because he really was kind of at the end of his life. He didn't have much time left," Cathy said, adding she can't thank the donor family enough for what they did.
"That they thought of somebody else at such a horrible time for themselves, I'm very grateful," said Cathy.
"Because they donated, we had another child and Dean has seen all three kids graduate high school. He's seen our older daughter and our son graduate from university and our daughter got married last year and he got to walk her down the aisle.
"All of that would never have happened if somebody hadn't been unselfishness enough to think of somebody else at a time in their life that was terrible, absolutely horrible for them."
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About a year ago, Omeniuk developed a shortness of breath and a few other symptoms that told him his heart's time was nearing its end once again.
"I guess the life expectancy of a transplant [heart] is 10 years and I was at 20," he said.
His heart had become a stiff muscle and three doctors stood at the end of his hospital bed, telling him the only way to fix it was with another transplant.
He was on the waiting list for just one day before a matching heart came in.
He went under the knife again in April 2017 and is now making sure as many people as possible know about the importance of organ donation.
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Omeniuk knows he's lucky because many people who need organs die waiting. It's important for everyone to sign up to become a donor and to tell their families of their wishes, he said.
Omeniuk and his wife and kids recently debuted the truck in the Springfield Chicken Daze parade and handed out organ donation pamphlets.
People have since told them they have signed up to become donors, which makes the Omeniuks happiest of all.