Marc Schnetz
When the Springfield, Illinois doctors treating Sherri Schnetz for heart failure realized she needed a level of expertise they could not provide, they suggested Sherri and her husband, Marc, seek help from the Washington University cardiovascular team at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis.
Marc says it was the best advice they could have gotten. Barnes-Jewish has one of the top advanced heart failure programs in the region, and many of its patients have been referred by outside cardiologists who feel confident the hospital’s team can handle the most complicated cases. The Barnes-Jewish doctors recommended Sherri undergo implantation of a left ventricular assist device, or LVAD — a battery-operated, mechanical pump that helps the left ventricle pump blood to the rest of the body. The procedure gave Sherri and Marc more time together.
“Barnes-Jewish Hospital afforded me another eight months to have Sherri in my life,” Marc says. “I’m forever very grateful to everyone there.”
Marc says that the doctors and staff at Barnes-Jewish Hospital made the couple feel special from the very beginning. The attention and care given to both him and his wife made Marc want to give back. As a result, he arranged for a future gift from his trust and established a charitable gift annuity with The Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital designated to LVAD research and patient care.
“If you’re pondering a legacy gift, listen to your heart,” Marc says. “I can’t think of a better way to honor Sherri’s memory than to help someone else. It’s all about paying it forward.”
To learn more about legacy giving, please contact Joan Cheaney, CFRE, at 314-286-0704 or PlannedGiving@BJC.org.