Grateful Transplant Patient Pays It Forward in Spirit

Walter “Bud” Hultsch, Jr. was a Kankakee-area architect, Chicago Bears and Cubs fan, woodworker, husband, father, and grandfather.  When his Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) started to impede his ability to do the things he loved – like taking walks and playing with his grandchildren – his referring physician recommended Loyola’s lung transplant program. Under the leadership and care of James Gagermeier, MD, Medical Director, Pulmonary Medicine, Loyola’s team performed a successful lung transplant, allowing Bud to return to his everyday life.

Bud’s lung transplant gave him an extra nine and a half years of life, a significant amount of time considering the average life expectancy for most patients after a lung transplant is five years. Bud was incredibly grateful for the care he received from Loyola’s lung transplant team, including Dr. Gagermeier, Jeffrey Schwartz, MD, Chair of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, and Monsurat Okesanjo, RN, MSN, Lung Transplant Coordinator, and asked his family to use a portion of his assets to make a gift to Loyola after his passing. 

In 2023, the Hultsch family honored his wishes by making a gift in support of the Greatest Needs of Lung Transplant, which provides support for patient care, education, training, equipment, and technology within the lung transplant program. Recently, this fund made it possible for several lung transplant colleagues to attend the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation Annual Meeting, where they attended educational sessions focused on innovative treatment approaches, patient-based clinical decision-making, and managing complex cases. 

Bud’s family is thankful for the extra time they had with him and the quality of his final years. They reminisce about his many trips to Florida and the contests between him and his son to see who could get the most steps in one day. All of us at Loyola are grateful to the Hultsch family for fulfilling Bud’s wishes and honoring his legacy by making a difference in the lives of others.