Surprise! Why the World Series trophy visited this Columbus resident’s hospital room
His number of days spent in a hospital has stretched to more than 140, but watching on TV as the Atlanta Braves won the World Series last fall lifted Brad Hollingsead’s spirit as he waits for a heart transplant. Now, a closer connection to his beloved team has boosted his mood even more.
Representatives from the Braves organization — along with the World Series trophy — made a surprise visit to his room Jan. 19 at Emory University Hospital, thanks to palliative medicine nurse practitioner Courtney Cawthon, who heard Hollingsead mention he wished to see the trophy in person.
“It’s more than I imagined would ever happen,” Hollingsead, 43, of Columbus, said in Emory’s news release.
Hollingsead, a former U.S. Army drill sergeant who served four tours in Afghanistan, was diagnosed with heart failure in May and admitted to the hospital in September. He must stay in the hospital to receive life-saving medications and daily monitoring until he receives a heart transplant.
“The role of palliative medicine is to really listen and understand what matters most to people,” Cawthon said, “and it seemed like it would be something really valuable for him.”
This story was originally published February 4, 2022 at 11:00 AM.
