UDPATE: Marley and her new heart are finally home. Our little girl and her Mom spent four long months after her transplant waiting near Loma Linda and now they have finally been released. Marley is back in school and you would never know by looking at her that anything had ever happened.

We as a a family owe a huge debt of gratitude to the surgeons and staff of Loma Linda hospital, to the citizens of the Eastern Sierra, and to all who donated (whether it be time or money) in order to bring our girl home healthy and happy. You all have our enduring thanks and love. -brad

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This little girl is Marley Herrera. Thanks for visiting her page. Marley needs our help.

We aren't trying to change the world. We aren't looking to do a thousand things or accomplish a thousand goals. We are trying to do one thing for one special little girl. Marley needs a new heart so that she can go home and get back to being a kid.

Marley lives in Mammoth Lakes, in California's snowy Sierra Nevada. She's a ninth grader and fifteen years old. She likes to do regular kid things, go to school, hang out with her friends, spend time with her cats and her big skinny dog, Ronan. She's a bit of a ham and loves nothing more than to sing and dance. Her Mom Clair is a singer, and Mar has her Mother's beautiful voice... although she says, "I'm a much better dancer".

Marley was born with a heart that didn't function properly and received a transplant at just one month of age. She's lived her whole life on anti-rejection medications, having to constantly be monitored by her surgeons. It seems sometimes that she's always being poked or prodded, having blood drawn or having another biopsy (those are the worst), but you would never know by looking at her. Marley is always happy, always smiling, always singing. She doesn't complain. She doesn't whine. She's the single most cheerful person I've ever met and her little smile is infectious.

Unfortunately, the arteries that supply the heart beating in our Marleygirl's chest are dying. Her surgeons have decided that she needs another transplant. Right now Marley and Clair are waiting near Loma Linda hospital for a donor organ to come available because their home in the mountains is too far away from the transplant center. The call could come in at any time, day or night, they can only wait by the phone. The call could come tonight, it could be a year from now, no one knows. Marley is three hundred miles from home, waiting. She's away from her friends and school, away from her beloved pets, she can't even dance to pass the time... doctor's orders. Clair is there with her, jumping every time the phone rings, knowing that it could mean that they need to run to the hospital for major surgey, watching the bills pile up, not knowing when she'll be able to work again.

All we want is to get our little Marley a new heart and get her through the months of needed recovery after surgery, so that she can come home again and get back to what regular kids do. If there is anything that you can do for Marley or Clair, no matter how small, please help. Please visit our donations page if you can, and make sure to sign our guestbook and send Marley and Clair good wishes. And please... please.... become a donor and help save a life.

Thank you for taking the time,
-Brad J Ellis

UPDATE! UPDATE! UPDATE!

Marley got her heart!!! We got the call late Tuesday night and raced to the hospital. A donor organ had become available. Marley had been waiting for months and months and it seemed to us as though this call was never going to come. Clair said that Marley was singing and laughing in the truck on the way to the hospital. What can I say, the kid is tough.

Marley was in surgery most of the day on Wednesday, May 20th, nine long hours. There were some problems with bleeding but otherwise we could not have asked for a better operation. Our thanks to all the staff at Loma Linda and especially to our benevolent organ donor... whoever you were. There is just no possible way to express the gratitude one feels in this situation.

Marley is now recovering from her surgery. She's breathing on her own, taking her first steps powered by the new heart, taking things slowly. She still has a long way to go, months of tests and healing and more tests before she can go home again. We are hoping to have her back in Mammoth in time for her to start the new schoolyear, but we'll have to wait and see. At least now the waiting is over, now every step is a step towards home.

Thanks so much to everyone who has visited this page and especially to all our donors. Clair and Marley still have a long way to go in order to get back to their lives and really do appreciate all the help. Check back here soon, I'll keep updating as to Marley's recovery.

-Brad J Ellis