Mark Kisner's Story

Mark Kisner is a freckle-faced red-headed boy, with strength and will beyond compare.

Mark was born in September 2002 in Ohio. Soon after, doctors determined there was a severe problem with his heart. With a lesion on one of his heart valves, Mark had a balloon procedure at 5 days old as a temporary fix. Open heart surgery followed again at 5 months old and 4 years old.

All were successful. But then, in Spring 2008, when Mark was 5 years old, doctors determined Mark was in severe heart failure, and now had problems with his lungs, too.

Doctors gave Melissa Kisner two options: take her son home to die or try putting him on an experimental assistance device, called a Berlin Heart, to hopefully give his heart and lungs a rest and make him strong enough for a transplant. Melissa chose to fight for her son’s life. It worked.

Mark underwent a heart transplant at University of Pittsburgh Children’s Hospital in September 2009, less than a week before his 7th birthday. The transplant was a success.

Meanwhile, the financial pressures grew. Melissa’s partner, Scott, lost his job because of taking off too much time to care for Mark’s younger brother, Ashton. Scott took a temporary job in Pittsburgh to bring in income and be close to Mark, Melissa and Ashton.

Mark’s two older siblings stayed with grandparents. The problem was: who was going to care for little Ashton?

A hospital social worker contacted the Erika Kate Foundation in search of assistance for the family. The social worker identified a daycare program in Pittsburgh near the hospital that could look after Ashton during the day. That allowed Scott to work and Melissa to be with Mark in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, which does not allow young children as visitors. EKF generously paid for Ashton’s care.

EKF also helped by making a car payment for Melissa.

Mark is now happily back home in Ohio with his family.