Before transplant, dad doubted he'd ever take boy to game

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Heartwarming day at Sox Park
AVID FAN | Before transplant, dad doubted he'd ever take boy to game

August 25, 2008
Chicago Sun Times

BY MARY HOULIHAN Staff Reporter mhoulihan@suntimes.com

In a father-son ritual that's played out over and over at ballparks across the country, die-hard White Sox fan Terry Zmucki introduced his young son Zachary to big-league baseball Sunday afternoon.

For Zmucki, the experience was something he thought he might never live to see. He was born with a bad heart and everything was touch and go until he received a heart and kidney transplant two years ago.
» Click to enlarge image
Terry and Mary Zmucki hold son Zachary at U.S. Cellular Field on Sunday. Taking Zachary to his first White Sox game was a dream come true for his father.
(Keith Hale/Sun-Times)



On the day of the game, Zmucki seemed even more excited about it than his nearly 3-year-old son, who was really excited about the fireworks.

"This is a pretty big deal for me," said Zmucki, of Hobart, Ind. "We play ball at home, and to take him to see the Sox is something I've been hoping I'd be around to do."

On a pretty summer afternoon, Zmucki and his son, along with his wife, Mary, and his parents, Tom and Ilene, sat behind home plate as the Sox beat the Tampa Bay Rays in a nail-biting 10 innings.

"Zachary was a little restless," Zmucki reported. "But he celebrated every time there was a home run. It really was an exciting game."

Zmucki, 36, celebrates the second anniversary of his transplant in November. He says his new heart is working fine, but two months after surgery, his kidney failed. He is on dialysis three times a week and back on the organ donor list.

On the days he isn't at dialysis, Zmucki cares for his son. He looks on the positive side of things.

"I've spent more time with my son than most dads get to do," he said. "And that's something good that's come out of all this."

Zmucki was born with a faulty heart valve. Before his transplant, he'd had seven open-heart surgeries. Only a transplant would give him a chance at survival. Now, two years after his life-saving surgery at the University of Chicago Medical Center, he's teaching his son about the game he loves.

If Zmucki had had his way in life, he would have played professional baseball. He still managed to play Little League ball until he was 12. After that, he coached and played softball. Now his aspirations lie in what he hopes will be a winning season for the Sox.

He hopes Zachary inherits his love of baseball, but if he doesn't, he says that's OK, too.

"I want him to be happy," Zmucki said, "and to be here to help him in whatever sport he chooses. But I'll always be hoping that sport is baseball."

http://www.suntimes.com/lifestyles/health/1124647,CST-NWS-trans25.article#