His heart was broken, so on Valentine's Day he got a new one

Anthony Humbles Sr.'s heart was dying, and so was he — day by day.

Until he received the perfect Valentine's Day gift last year: A new heart.

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Humbles was diagnosed with congestive heart failure in 2010 due to a genetic condition called cardiomyopathy, which resulted in a weakness of his heart muscle. He suffered a stroke in 2012 and had a heart pump implanted in 2016. Later that year, his name was added to the heart transplant waiting list. About five weeks later, he got the call.

And he didn't answer the phone. 

It was around midnight Feb. 13, 2017, when Humbles' phone rang with urgent news that would change his life. It went to voicemail.

Stirred from sleep, he listened to the message: "We have a heart, call us back!" He called right back. "I'll be there in five minutes," he told the St. Vincent Heart Center transplant coordinator, even though he lives 10 minutes away.

Humbles was ready, but his wife was not. 

"It's high-risk. I was very hesitant," said Kelley Humbles, who had been managing her husband's care for years. But she knew Anthony, and this was his chance. He was not going to let it get away.

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"I'm probably the mellowest guy to ever come in for a transplant," he said. To keep things loose, he cracked jokes to medical staff as they wheeled him into the operating room. The surgery began late in the day on the 13th and stretched into the wee hours of the 14th.

The symbolism of getting a heart on Valentine's Day may have been perfect, but Humbles wasn't thinking about the date when he opened his eyes after surgery one year ago.

The Indianapolis man was thinking about his wife, his three sons and his grandchildren. He was thinking about how lucky he was to have been given another chance.

"It's his new birthday," Kelley said, as the couple recalled the anxious days and hours before and after the 10-hour surgery. 

A year ago today, Humbles became the 448th person to receive a transplanted heart at St. Vincent Heart Center, Indianapolis, which recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of its cardiac transplant program. The first human heart transplant was performed Dec. 3, 1967, in South Africa.

Ninety percent of heart transplant patients in the U.S. survive their first year with a new heart, thanks to advances in medication to prevent infection and rejection. Half of all patients survive an average of 15 years, and some live much longer. 

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Now, on the anniversary of his new life, Humbles, 54, has lots to say about organ donation, second chances and love. But ask him what he'd say to his heart donor's family if he had the chance, and he is overcome.

He lets out a heavy sigh, and his wife hands him a tissue. A long minute goes by.

"I would tell them thank you and sorry for their loss," he says, struggling for the words, "and it was well-received through me." 

In the United States, 20 people on average die every day waiting for an organ transplant, according to UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing). The Indiana Donor Network reports that nearly 1,500 Hoosiers and more than 120,000 people nationwide are waiting for life-saving transplants. 

Anthony and Kelley know little about the person whose heart beats inside him now. Only that he or she was a young person who died tragically. Last summer, Kelley sent a letter to the donor's family through the hospital's transplant coordinator and social worker, but they haven't heard anything back. And it's possible they never will, she said.

Still, "I would like a chance to meet the family. Give them a big hug."

Dr. Christopher Salerno, a cardiothoracic surgeon at St. Vincent, operated on Humbles. Despite performing more than 200 heart transplants over his career, he still marvels at the technology and the emotional impact of the procedure.

"I do a lot of surgery, but there's something about a heart transplant," he said. "It's not only a tremendous gift of life for the patient, but for the entire family. This revolutionizes their life, gives them a sense of normalcy."

Salerno said Anthony and Kelley are "remarkable people."

"We live in a world where we don't appreciate how much people go through. They are ambassadors not only for St. Vincent but for all transplant families," Salerno said.

The heart that the medical team removed from Humbles was a sight — scarred and stretched out of shape. His new heart is younger, smaller and with more muscle and less fat. Humbles has pictures of both to remind him of life before and after the transplant.

He never smoked or drank, he said, and he was active, working long hours for FedEx, playing softball and coaching youth basketball. But he also battled hypertension for years and gradually became weaker and weaker. 

Today, he says his stamina is good, though he suffers some weakness on his left side due to the stroke.

"The big thing is I'm coaching again."

Humbles, who played football and ran track at Northwest High School, volunteers several hours a week as a basketball coach for 7- to 10-year-olds in the Police Athletic League program at the JTV Hill Center in the Martindale-Brightwood neighborhood. Sports and service are in his blood.

"It brings back memories of all the mentors I had over at Riverside," where he grew up, he said. "A lot of coaches there taught me a lot. My dad was a scoutmaster in that area and coached baseball."

Dr. Mary Walsh, Humbles' cardiologist, said his "remarkable attitude" has contributed to his continued good health since his transplant. He also benefits from having a strong advocate in his wife, Walsh said. "She's been by his side for the whole journey."

Humbles is on disability now but keeps busy helping out neighbors and coaching youth, for which he's been honored by the PAL organization.

If he ever feels down, he said he thinks about his donor. "He (or she) keeps me going. And I have my grandkids to think about also. I just stay positive and keep moving."

On this Valentine's Day, Humbles said he'd probably start the day by meeting friends at the gym, then have dinner out with his wife. It's a big deal to her, she said, to celebrate his new birthday. "It makes the day all the more special."

The couple are registered organ donors and encourage others to consider giving that gift. "One person can save a lot of people," Kelley said. "Please do it."

Anyone can register to be an organ and tissue donor online at IndianaDonorNetwork.org, at a Bureau of Motor Vehicles branch or by filling out a written donor registration form. But it's important to share with your family your decision to be a donor, Walsh said.

"You can indicate your wishes on your license, but it's even more important to tell your family and friends that you wish to be a donor," she said. "At a time of what is always a terrible event, your family will be approached about donation, and it would be helpful that they know these are your wishes."

Call IndyStar reporter Maureen Gilmer at (317) 444-6879. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter: @MaureenCGilmer.