In his April 2009 conference talk President Thomas S. Monson said, "Be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith."
That's something Conley Martin knows well in his trying experiences with a life full of disease, four heart transplants, kidney failure and dialysis.
Brother Martin was born in June 1975 and was soon thereafter diagnosed with a rare infant disease called endocardial fibroelastosis. The outside tissue of his heart was slowly losing its elasticity and hardening. If left untreated, his heart would beat at a dangerous speed and eventually fail.
He was treated with the drug digitalis and closely monitored by a doctor for the next six years.
Then, when he was about 10 or 11 years old, he started to feel lethargic and had flu-like symptoms that he couldn't overcome. Over the next several months he spiraled down a slippery slope to what his family believed was death's door. The doctors had a hard time diagnosing the problem because his symptoms were not common to heart disease. Once they determined that it was his heart, he was so bad off that he could not be treated by medication.
At that time heart transplants were considered experimental, but it was the only option he had left. It was also difficult to find available organs that were ready and prepared for a transplant. It had to be approved by both the doctor and the insurance company, and the process was rather difficult.
However, through "a miraculous chain of events, led solely by my mother, under the Lord's hand, I was able to receive a heart transplant in September of 1986 at the age of 11," he said.
After the transplant, he attended a summer camp where he decided to stop taking his medication so he could become "one of the boys." His body suffered a massive rejection that permanently crippled the new heart.
He received a second heart transplant in March of 1991 when he was 15.
Another time, after coming home from a family vacation to Mexico, he experienced bad stomach pain and found out his medication was going right through his system and not being absorbed as it should. This triggered another massive rejection and led to his third transplant when he was 18, in December 1993.
He wanted to serve a full-time mission and was disappointed that he could not because of his health, said his mother, Christine Martin.
Brother Martin married Miriam Pickell in the Mesa Arizona Temple in September of 1998 and worked for an engineering firm for several years before he decided to go to school full-time to get his bachelor's degree in engineering. During that time, he and his wife moved into his mother's home because of the restrictions on his health.
In the fall of 2003, he was struggling to lug his backpack to and from classes, and he knew something was wrong. The doctors found that two of his four coronary arteries were 100 percent blocked with plaque, and the other two were between 90 and 100 percent blocked.
It was apparent Brother Martin would need another heart transplant.
His cardiologist had him quit school and eliminate all strenuous activities. But after his fourth heart transplant in December of 2004, his kidney's shut down and he needed to start dialysis treatments.
Brother Martin said dialysis took a toll on him physically, mentally and spiritually.
"Over the next six months I slowly slipped into a depression unlike anything I have ever experienced," he said.
One of his friends, Dwight Morris, gave him a blessing; a blessing that Brother Morris said changed his life.
"My spirit was renewed and touched like no other time in my life," Brother Martin said. "I felt a peace and reassurance that God lives, He knows me personally and, most important to me at the time, that my life and these trials are not in vain, that He has a plan for me and I know it to be true."
Three months ago, his doctor found out that catheter patients were lasting longer using a new machine that allowed for the dialysis to take place in the home. So during the next month Brother Martin and his family transformed one of the rooms upstairs into a dialysis lab. After ripping out the carpet, replumbing and rewiring, the room was equipped with all the machinery, a chair, sink and a sterile environment needed to do the home dialysis.
Now, at the age of 35, Brother Martin is completely on home dialysis and has seen so much improvement in how he feels.
"Dialysis is a part-time job in and of itself," Brother Martin said. "I have a hard time thinking because of the toxins that build up in the body, so I have a struggle with remembering things."
Even though this is a struggle, Brother Martin is serving as the Young Men secretary in the Dana Ward, Mesa Arizona Pueblo Stake, and is involved in planning the upcoming youth conference. He is also working toward writing down his experiences and life story in a book called The Boy with Five Hearts. He hopes to pass it down through the generations to inspire future family and friends. Once the book is completed, he said, his long-term goal for the future is to go back to school and finish his engineering degree.
"I am so thankful to have this blessing," Brother Martin said. "I am so grateful to my family who have done so much for me."
During his dialysis procedures, which can take a few hours, Brother Martin enjoys working on his family history. He attends the temple as often as he can.
"From the beginning he was a very special spirit," his mother said. "Every day is a miracle to have him still around, especially since his heart transplants, his whole life is a miracle."
Brother Martin said something he has learned from this is "if we feed our spirit, our body can be fed as well. Likewise, if we keep our body strong, the spirit can be strong in return."
"The gospel has been key in all of these trials," Brother Martin said. "I couldn't have done it without it."
