The Heart of the Matter
Posted on May 12, 2026 by Shari Van Baale
I am sure that most of you don’t know I was born with a heart defect. I have been fine for most of my life. As a child, my mom would take me into the city of Chicago for checkups about every three years. It was kind of fun; I got to miss a day of school, we usually went shopping and had lunch, and I got to lay on a table for a short time hooked up to machines with a bunch of smiley face stickers on my chest. As an adult, that increased to annually, with a couple of tests each year (minus the smiley faces!).
When we moved to Olathe, barely in my 30s, the first cardiologist I saw said I would need open heart surgery before I was 40. This really surprised me, as no one ever mentioned that I would need surgery before. But I ignored that and went on with my life, as I was exercising a lot and not having any symptoms. I am a person who is very active and does not like people to help me. While I didn’t exercise much as a child, once I got to college I discovered aerobics and walking, and I still love to get outside to hike to enjoy nature.
Pretty soon that will change … for a time. I am at the point in my life where I need my valve and aorta replaced. If I don’t, I will die, most likely of a ruptured aortic aneurysm. I don’t like knowing that I will need a major surgery very soon, but I have accepted it. I will be in the hospital for about a week, and afterward I will not be able to drive or do much for some time. The doctor did tell me short walks are encouraged, so that made me happy. But I don’t like asking for help or being the center of attention.
As a result of the surgery, I will have a large scar in the middle of my chest and will have to be on blood thinners for the rest of my life, two things I absolutely don’t want, but I also know are necessary.
For a time, I will mostly be working from home and coming into the office one day a week. By the end of the summer, hopefully things will be more back to normal.
So keep me in your prayers as I undergo this difficult surgery and recovery. It won’t be easy, but it is necessary.
Shari Van Baale
Salem Communications Coordinator