For US Army Sgt. First Class Louis B. Smith Jr., his heart and his father’s legacy are all wrapped up in a special tattoo.
After 21 years of service, Smith, a veteran of the south suburban Country Club Hills, found himself battling a new enemy: heart failure.
“I wasn’t really afraid of dying because I was a soldier,” Smith said. “So I was built for this, you know.”
Smith joined the army when he was just 17 years old and followed in his father’s footsteps, touring Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Germany and Korea.
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At age 63, Smith’s genetic heart condition left his heart function at just 10%. Doctors at Northwestern Memorial Hospital told him he needs a heart transplant.
“Just keeping my faith and telling myself everything is going to be OK,” he said.
Fortunately, a donor became available and before the surgery, Smith’s doctor asked if he had any requests.
“I was like, ‘Oh yeah, can you please try to save my tattoo?'” he asked them.
The tattoo, with the text ‘I did it my way’, from Frank Sinatra’s famous song, is more than just ink for Smith. It’s a connection to his late father, referencing a song they both listened to and the lyrics became their motto.
“I lost my dad in 2007, and he was a soldier too, and at the time I really missed him,” Smith said.
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Dr. Benjamin Bryner said, “There’s no way to do a transplant without leaving a scar, but we take all the time to at least get the tattoos aligned, and for him, I was happy with the outcome.”
Smith said he told his wife he thought the doctors did a good job preserving the tattoo.
“Now you can hardly tell it’s there!” he said.
Nearly a year after the hospital bell rang signifying a successful transplant, Smith was back doing what he loves: riding motorcycles and being a father and grandfather.
“I am very happy and in my life I have been blessed,” he said. “I don’t regret it and it says enough. The song says who I am.”
Smith remains a patient at Jesse Brown Veterans Affairs Medical Center, which has partnered with Northwestern Medicine for more than 77 years to help provide specialized care to veterans.
Marie Saavedra
