On a November morning in 1995, a little girl in Tampa was fighting for her life. 30 years later, she’s using her second chance to bring awareness to heart health.
TAMPA, Fla. — As the American Heart Association marks its Go Red for Women campaign, Mandi Shelley’s story is a powerful reminder of why heart health awareness matters.
On a November morning in 1995, eight-year-old Mandi was at a sleepover with her best friend, Jessica Docio, when something went terribly wrong.
“I don’t know if my memories are memories or what my mind has told me are memories,” Mandi said.
Jessica remembers waking up suddenly. “I truly believe something woke me up,” she said. “That’s when I started to hear noises coming from Mandi that were abnormal and they scared me.”
Jessica ran to her mother, a nurse, for help, then ran for her neighbor, who was a flight paramedic.
Mandi’s heart had stopped.
Paramedics shocked her heart four times before finally restoring her pulse. Mandi’s mother, Jeanne Tate, was already at work that morning.
“The first call that I got, they thought that she was gone because paramedics tried to revive her four times,” Tate said.
Mandi was rushed to Tampa General Hospital, where doctors determined a virus had attacked her heart. She would need a transplant to survive.
On December 15, 1995, a new heart arrived. The donor was a 10-year-old boy in Puerto Rico.
“For many years, I wrote to them annually and told them about Mandi,” Tate said. “I wanted them to know the gift that they had given us. And now Mandi writes them.”
That gift has been measured not just in years, but in milestones. Thirty years later, Mandi is still living with the same transplanted heart, which is rare.
She is now a mother of two, a dream made possible through surrogacy after pregnancy was deemed too risky for her heart.
“It’s a reminder of how precious life is and what can and can’t happen,” Mandi said. Every year, she celebrates her “heart birthday,” but survival isn’t simple.
Caring for her heart requires constant vigilance. Mandi takes daily medication, sees specialists regularly and pays close attention to her body. If something feels off, she doesn’t wait.
“You know, just be aware. Be aware. And if something doesn’t feel right, get it checked out,” she said.
Heart disease doesn’t always look the way people expect, especially in women.
Mandi is sharing her story to raise awareness about heart health, organ donation and the reality of life decades after transplant.
Jessica is still by her side, the two forever bonded by the night that changed everything.
“Man, it’s been a journey,” Jessica said.
“It has been a journey,” Mandi said.
And three decades after nearly losing her life, Mandi hopes her story encourages you to listen to your heart.
Supporting the Go Red for Women movement is easy. To learn more about heart health and the simple changes you can make at your own pace, visit the American Heart Association at heart.org.