Man gives longtime Evanston coach a new life

EVANSTON — As April, which is National Donate Life Month, comes to a close, the Herald met with a local organ transplant recipient — and his living donor — to promote awareness of organ donation.

"Everybody knows we have two kidneys, and you can live without one," Steve Baldwin, of Evanston, said, "but very few people know that you can give part of your liver."

In late 2022, after months of odd but not obvious symptoms, Baldwin was diagnosed with stage four cirrhosis of the liver, caused by non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

"My blood work never showed any problems," he said. Baldwin also said that he has no known family history of liver disease but surmises that "it was just a bad diet. ... I will readily admit I didn't eat well."

During the summer of that year, Baldwin said food became unappetizing and added he'd lost 45 pounds within a period of four months. He was also always cold.

"The liver actually controls hundreds of bodily functions — one is body temperature — which should have been a sign to me, but I had no idea," he said.

That fall, he became inexplicably ill enough to call out of work and visit a doctor, who told him within minutes what was causing him to be sick.

"I had cirrhosis, and I probably would need a transplant," he said the doctor told him.

That diagnosis was later confirmed following a referral to the liver clinic at the University of Utah. "There's no reversing cirrhosis, it's basically a death sentence," Baldwin said, noting that specialists there seemingly lacked any sense of urgency.

Scheduled for a checkup six months later, Baldwin said his hepatologist "wasn't overly concerned at the time."

Following a hospitalization in February 2023 for an enlarged spleen, caused by overcompensating for a failing liver, Baldwin, who has coached youth baseball for three decades, was ordered to hang up his glove for good.

"The doctor told me I couldn't coach anymore," he said of the potential deadly consequences of getting hit by an errant ball. "That was emotionally and mentally harder for me than being told I needed a transplant."

By April, Baldwin was given three years to live and officially entered into transplant protocol — the process of evaluation, candidate matching and immunosuppression.

"I was told that because of my body size and my blood type that I would not ever make it to the top of the list for a deceased donor," Baldwin, who is 6 foot 2, said. "If I was going to get a transplant, I needed to have a living donor."

Baldwin and his wife, Heather, began sharing his story.

"We just told people about my situation; we didn't go out and ask," he said.

Enter Tyler Jessup, a friend through church with whom Baldwin had lost touch after Jessup relocated to Idaho.

"He found out from another friend that I'd been sick and he was actually the first person to contact the University of Utah about being a donor," Baldwin said.

Baldwin said he knows of at least 62 others who had contacted the hospital to inquire about becoming his liver donor.

"It was very humbling, actually," he told the Herald as tears welled up in his eyes. "It isn't a decision to be made lightly," Jessup told the Herald, "but Steve's fought the real battle here."

Once matched, Baldwin's hepatologist told him that he was actually sicker than previously thought.

"They were starting to tell me that it's not going to be three years … we've got to get this done," he said.

Successful but complicated surgeries

Surgery was performed on Sept. 19, 2023, after which Baldwin was informed that "had it been a week later, you would have been too sick to receive a transplant." He was also told he wouldn't have made it to Christmas without it.

"I received 65% of his liver," Baldwin said. "The liver and the skin are the only organs that regenerate. The liver grows back and fills that space," for both the donor and the recipient, he said.

Jessup's surgery took roughly three hours, followed by a week post-op hospitalization, compared to Baldwin's 11-hour operation — during which he was later told he died on the table — and a three-week hospitalization. Baldwin's extended stay was due in part to a plethora of complications including blood-flow and bile-duct issues and a critical allergic reaction to an anti-rejection medication. A surgical sponge left inside his cavity was discovered and needed to be removed.

Baldwin admits the experience has been grueling, often beset with setback after setback.

"My recovery has been very difficult, even worse in a lot of ways," he said. "It has been an up and downhill battle with all kinds of separate issues and side effects," including chronic kidney disease "because everything was working overtime."

"There was some preparation for that. I actually had to go through a psychological evaluation prior to transplant," he said, "but there's a lot they don't tell you because there's so much that they can't tell you or maybe there are certain things they won't tell you because then you may not go through with it."

Jessup said his recovery went well and that he hasn't experienced any major or lingering complications.

"It's absolutely worth it when you can give somebody you love the chance to live longer and to hopefully have a better, higher quality of life," the donor said.

"I don't think there's any way for me to repay that," Baldwin said of his friend's selfless gift. "It takes a lot of sacrifice and it takes a lot of strength for a person to be able to do that."

"I would do it again," Jessup said. In fact, he is currently offering a kidney to the list. "It was a rewarding experience being able to feel like you've really made a tangible difference for somebody," he said.

Clean bill of health

During a recent checkup, Baldwin's new liver was given a clean bill of health.

"I absolutely would not be here without the support of so many people," he said, referring to his family, which includes his wife of 36 years, two adult sons, a granddaughter who enjoys dancing, and a baseball-loving grandson. "… Also friends, neighbors, church members, employees and work supervisors — I had a ton of support," he said.

Baldwin is also planning to compete in table tennis at the Transplant Games in Denver in June. The Baldwins also have plans to spend time with Jessup.

"Last summer, we picked him up and went on a road trip," Baldwin said. "We were basically doing a photography tour. ... Tyler teaches a photography class and I wanted to learn some stuff."

Both men said they're planning a similar trip this summer.

"We've reconnected and have been able to keep that friendship going," Jessup said. "They're actually like family to me."

This story was published on April 30, 2026.