Perkins, Kelly 1961-

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Perkins, Kelly 1961-

PERSONAL:

Born 1961; married Craig Perkins, 1987.

ADDRESSES:

CAREER:

Writer, adventurer, mountain climber, entrepreneur, and memoirist. Guest on television programs, including the Today Show, ABC Evening News, Extra, Prosieben, Good Morning America, and Crier Report, and on radio programs on ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, and XM Radio. HydraCoach, Inc. (a manufacturer of hydration monitoring products for athletes and consumers), cofounder.

WRITINGS:

The Climb of My Life: Scaling Mountains with a Borrowed Heart (memoir), Rowman & Littlefield (Lanham, MD), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

Kelly Perkins is a memoirist, adventurer, and internationally recognized mountain climber. Though scaling some of the world's most dangerous and exhilarating peaks is a noteworthy accomplishment for any mountaineer, Perkins achieved her many success under extremely difficult conditions. She reached the coveted summits of mountains such as Kilimanjaro, Fuji, and the Matterhorn after receiving a complete heart transplant in November 1995. In The Climb of My Life: Scaling Mountains with a Borrowed Heart, Perkins relates her personal story, including the circumstances leading up to her transplant, her ferocious determination to return to her active lifestyle as a frequent climber, and how, with the assistance of her husband Craig, she has expanded the horizons of what can be accomplished by an individual even after a profound and life-threatening illness.

A dedicated outdoors enthusiast, Perkins grew up near Lake Tahoe, California, and frequently went on backpacking trips, climbing expeditions, and other physically challenging excursions. After marrying Craig, the couple spent most of their resources on outdoor activities and adventures, noted a Kirkus Reviews contributor. In 1992, they spent a holiday in Switzerland, hiking the Alps in celebration of their fifth wedding anniversary, reported Lancet reviewer Clare Kapp. Shortly after returning from Switzerland, however, Perkins began to experience unusual physical conditions, including a rapid heartbeat. She was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, most likely caused by a virus that had infected her heart. Several years of frequent hospital stays followed, during which her condition worsened. To stave off this potentially lethal condition, she was given an implanted defibrillator that would automatically shock her heart back into the proper rhythm. In 1995, she experienced congestive heart failure and was placed on the emergency transplant list at the UCLA Medical Center.

Within twenty-four hours, a heart became available from a forty-year-old victim of a horse riding accident, Kapp reported. After her successful transplant, Perkins faced the monumental task of rebuilding her strength and regaining her previously high level of physical conditioning. "Her zeal for mountain trekking and climbing only increased after her transplant on November 20, 1995. Any fears about stressing her new heart were overwhelmed by a desire to rebuild her strength," commented Bill Cormier, writing in the Tampa Tribune. Less than a year after her transplant, Perkins completed her first successful post-transplant climb. Since 1996, she has climbed the Half Dome in Yosemite National Park; the Cajon de Arenales in Argentina; Mount Whitney in California; and three of the best-known peaks in the world: the Matterhorn, in Switzerland; Mount Kilimanjaro, in Africa; and Mount Fuji, in Japan.

Throughout her lengthy ordeal and difficult recovery, Perkins's husband Craig remained devoted to her and her accomplishments. Craig "has given his wife a gold charm for every major mountain climbed since her transplant," noted Cormier. In important ways, her memoir is as much about her harrowing ordeal and recovery as it is about the deep love shared between herself and her husband. Among his other tributes to her courage, Craig "surprised his wife by presenting her with the ashes of the woman who had donated Perkins' heart. In a brief but emotional ceremony, Perkins scattered the ashes of this brave donor," reported My Hero Web site contributor Susannah Abbey. Because of the close bond between Perkins and her husband, Booklist reviewer Danise Hoover named the book a "powerful love story as well as a cutting-edge medical and sports adventure."

"This is not a book for the weak of heart, but for anyone who wants to believe in the human spirit being able to overcome obstacles, this is breathtaking reading," observed Trioweb.org Web site reviewer Jim Gleason. "Even readers who aren't mountaineers will get caught up in Perkins's story," commented Mindy Rhiger, writing in Library Journal. The Kirkus Reviews critic remarked that Perkins's account "will inspire readers to live life to the fullest—and to sign an organ-donor card."

Perkins told CA: "I received so many emails over the years, all from people who are desperately reaching out to those who offer a glimmer of hope that their situation has the ‘possibility’ of having a positive outcome. I know what they are feeling because I was there. I reached out in the same manner, searching for the same ray of hope. And when I found something positive, I latched on to it like a trusty life raft that was going to carry me to safety. My story is one of hope, and it is for this reason that I wrote this book.

"My work is definitely influenced by my heart transplant. While it is something I would never wish on any one, it was the greatest thing that ever happened to me. The image fosters nightmares, but it has given me more opportunities than I have ever dreamed of—now I live with intent and purpose, knowing I need to do important things—because good health is a luxury, not a guarantee, so I feel I have no time to waste.

"Writing this book took me over ten years. Initially the thought was daunting, but I approached it like a climb—I needed to break it down into smaller pieces. For the book, I used a rough proposal as the spine of the book, and chapter by chapter, filled in the rest. Thank goodness sticky notes are recyclable; I used a lot of them.

"I worked on the computer until a chapter was fairly complete, then printed it out and headed to the beach where I would read it to my husband for his feedback, as he lived it, too. I wanted to make sure it was correct, honest, but also aimed to temper the drama for those people who may be facing the same thing. It was a delicate and difficult balance.

"Specifically relating to a memoir, I was most surprised as a writer about how my memory would fail me, especially during the troublesome/scary times in my past. Thankfully, I had taken copious notes which, with the goal of being honest, made all the difference in the world.

"Also, I am loath to complain, but the publishing world is … kind of hard.

"I want my story to provide an example of hope; to show people that they can honor their bodies, despite imperfections/shortcomings, and stand tall; to show couples and families that an illness can bring you closer together if it happens to ‘both’ vs. just ‘one’ person; and lastly, I want my story to inspire people to participate in blood, tissue, and organ donation in an effort to close the gap between the demand and the supply."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

Perkins, Kelly, The Climb of My Life: Scaling Mountains with a Borrowed Heart, Rowman & Littlefield (Lanham, MD), 2007.

PERIODICALS

Booklist, October 15, 2007, Danise Hoover, review of The Climb of My Life, p. 19.

Capper's, April, 2007, "Kelly Perkins," p. 2.

Kirkus Reviews, August 15, 2007, review of The Climb of My Life.

Lancet, September 13, 2003, Clare Kapp, "Heart Transplant Recipient Climbs the Matterhorn: 42-year-old Kelly Perkins Becomes the First Person with a Heart Transplant to Ascend the 4478-m Peak," profile of Kelly Perkins, p. 880.

Library Journal, September 1, 2007, Mindy Rhiger, review of The Climb of My Life, p. 158.

Los Angeles Times, July 19, 1998, Nancy Wride, "Peak Experience Warms Her New Heart; Transplant Recipient Scatters Donor's Ashes after Trek up Mt. Fuji," profile of Kelly Perkins, p. A1.

Publishers Weekly, August 13, 2007, review of The Climb of My Life, p. 52.

Tampa Tribune (Tampa, FL), March 4, 2007, Bill Cormier, "At Her Peak," profile of Kelly Perkins, p. 8.

Transplant News, November 28, 2001, "California Woman Becomes First Heart Transplant Recipient to Scale 19,340-foot Mount Kilimanjaro," profile of Kelly Perkins; September 15, 2003, "California Woman Becomes First Heart Transplant Recipient to Climb Matterhorn," profile of Kelly Perkins.