WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAW) – It’s the news no person wants to receive: you have months to live, unless you receive a heart transplant. Two men have created a bond over receiving that news, and later getting heart transplants just days apart.
Three years and one day after Denis Menjivar’s son, Denis, died from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, he received a heart transplant for the same genetic condition.
For Denis and his wife, Francisca, it’s no coincidence Denis’ surgery was so close to the anniversary of their son’s death. It’s also no coincidence they met Scott and Sandy Kneser.
“He was an amazing kid. And he got so many dreams,” Denis Menjivar said about his son. “I believe he was with me all the time. Yeah. So he’s my angel from heaven. And I got my angel, that’s my wife here.”
Before their procedures, the two men were waiting for heart donations on the same floor. They had a little fun.
“There were times we were out in the hallway together and kind of like, racing as fast as two people with heart pumps can race,” Scott Kneser said. “He was always coming by. I did six laps. I said, ‘You know what? You’re 20 years younger than me. You should be doing eight more laps than me.’ So yeah, we had good times.”
Shared faith and recovery
The pair bonded over their faith in God, recovery, and losing loved ones to the same disease they were fighting. According to a doctor from U.W. Health, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy means the heart is too large and cannot pump blood properly.
“It’s unfortunate that I got it. It’s unfortunate that it was in my family, but we rose above that and we’re on to the next level of our life,” Scott Kneser said.
For Scott, that means finally reffing again, after not being able to for the last ten years because of his heart. For Denis, he feels amazing and glad to no longer rely on a heart defibrillator.
The two couples now want to share the impact being an organ donor can have.
“We’re thankful for all those donated, and that’s amazing they decided to do that,” Denis Menjivar said.
Before Denis and Scott even met, their wives got to talking at a home for family members of people receiving transplants. They soon figured out their husbands had the same genetic disease, and were both waiting to receive heart transplants. Denis and Scott got those transplants just three days from one another.
Return to the court
In September 2024, Scott was told he had 6 months to live. He’d been living with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy for over 35 years and was relying on a heart defibrillator. After his heart transplant last November, he set a few goals for recovery. One of those: getting back on the court.
“It’s going to be the culmination of 10 years of wanting to be able to do that again. So the excitement level, like I said, is, it’s ramping up. I can feel it ramp up, but I got to try and remain calm because, I have a job to do,” Scott Kneser said.
On December 12th, Scott refereed his first game in 10 years. He had a few supporters in the crowd.
Although Scott and Denis met at UW Health in Madison, they both live in north central Wisconsin, just 30 minutes from each other. They call one another transplant brothers.
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