In 1999 Taylor Berry was diagnosed with Restrictive Cardiomyopathy a rare disease caused by viral pneumonia. The treatment for this was a heart transplant. He was 4 years old when he, his sister and mother moved to Houston to await the transplant. In May of 2000 Taylor received the gift of a new heart. Taylor has enjoyed a normal life over the past nine years. He has played soccer, baseball, and swam for the Club Estates Marlins. He has been given the opportunity to go to school and receive an education despite frequent illnesses caused by taking post transplant drugs. Because of the side effects of so many transplant drugs and the damage done from repeated episodes of rejection children with heart transplants require a second and sometimes a third cardiac transplantation within the first ten years. Taylor has been blessed to have his first transplant last nine years, and to only have just begun to experience the difficulty that arises from numerous infections, episodes of rejection, and immunosuppressant drugs which will require him to get a second cardiac transplant in the future. In the Spring of 2009 Taylor's mother, Tamara, came to me and told me that her son would have to undergo a second heart transplant and she wanted me to pray about doing a fund raiser. So, we gathered the testimonies to be compiled into this book; the proceeds will go the Taylor Berry Foundation to cover expenses that are not covered by medical insurance. I know this will be a HUGE blessing to Taylor and his family but it is the prayer of each contributor that the words written in this book might make an eternal difference in the life of someone we may never know. Visit Taylor's Caringbridge website at: www.caringbridge.org, website name "taylorberry1."
