A friend in need

A close family friend arrived shortly after he became ill and informed the paramedic team about a heart condition Kenny suffered from. He was removed to Mount Sinai Hospital. And other than brief stays at home, he’s been there since.
Kenny was born in July 1959 in Loughrea, Co. Galway, with a hole in his heart. The doctors’ prognosis wasn’t good, but Kenny’s mother, Jane, was determined that he would live as normal and as full a life as possible. And despite his frailty, and her own early death, that is what he has had for much of his life.
Two years ago, however, after a routine visit to a doctor, Kenny was told that his heart had become progressively worse and that his lungs were showing signs of deterioration. He was placed on the cardio thoracic list at Mount Sinai for a heart and lung transplant. But he continued with his life as normal. He and his wife, Catherine, bought a house in Woodlawn in the Bronx and moved in with their daughter Rebecca, who’s now 4. Almost a year ago, a second daughter was born. They named her Aisling.
A transplant was postponed several times. Then came his collapse at the subway station. Ten weeks later, on June 1, he was given a new heart and lungs. It was the first such operation at Mount Sinai in almost a decade.
“He’s holding his own,” said his first cousin Michael Tierney, who’s also from Loughrea. “The last few months have been a real testing period.”
Friends and family had thought that the operation itself on a 43-year-old man would be the main hurdle, but the recuperation has proven to be grueling. There have been several setbacks.
“It’s been a major adjustment for his body,” Tierney said. “But doctors are confident that they’ll have him back out on the street.”

A normal life
More than 40 years ago, Jane Kenny took her ill baby to Crumlin Children’s Hospital in Dublin. The doctors had little encouraging to tell her.
“At that time, there wasn’t much they could do,” said Kenny’s brother Frank, who’s eight years his junior and also a barman at Mustang Harry’s.
Today, a baby with the same condition is operated on within a year or two of birth and has a good chance of a full recovery.
In the 1960s, Jane Kenny was delighted to see that young Joe’s body became accustomed somewhat to its malfunctioning heart. Inevitably, though, he suffered from shortness of breath, anemia and poor circulation.
“If the weather was wet outside, my mother kept him in,” his brother said.
As a youngster he became passionate about Manchester United. His room was wallpapered with posters of the team and its greatest stars, Bobby Charlton and George Best. His devout mother took him to Lourdes, when he might have preferred a pilgrimage to Old Trafford in Manchester. And like all the boys at De La Salle Brothers school in Loughrea, he was devoted to Galway’s hurling and football teams. By the time the ’70s came along, a new interest, music, was added to that of sports. “He loved the Bay City Rollers,” said his brother, referring to a popular band of that era.
When Joe Kenny was 15, his mother died. Jane Kenny was survived by her husband and five children. Joe, the middle child, spent some time living with his aunt. Upon finishing school, he moved to Galway City where he worked first as a waiter and then a barman.
In 1986, he followed an older brother Michael to New York City. The dryer, warmer weather proved to be a boon to his health. And he greatly enjoyed the active Irish social life in the Bronx.
“He is quiet and very much a gentleman,” recalled Caroline Conway, who arrived from Dublin at about the same time. “He really is a wonderful guy. I remember when we were all single, all of our group, about 25 of us from three or four apartments, would have Christmas dinner together. Joe was only guy who would bring a gift, like a box of chocolates, for the women who cooked the meal. He was very respectful.”
It was easy with his experience to find work in New York bars.
“Joe is the type of person who never wanted any sympathy. He got on with it and did his thing,” Tierney said. “As a barman he wasn’t looking to cut out early.”
His passion for Manchester United was as strong as ever; now his new heroes were its Dublin-born stars Kevin Moran and Paul McGrath. With thousands of others, he followed them and the entire Irish squad to the World Cup in Italy in 1990, and went to the games here when the United States hosted the tournament in 1994.
There were also trips home, as well as to Old Trafford. (He still has a brother and sister back in Ireland. His father died eight years ago.)
On those vacations back to Galway, a friendship made before he emigrated blossomed into a romance. In 1997, Joe Kenny and Catherine Burke got married.
Friends today laud him as a devoted husband and father.
“His eyes light up when he sees his children,” said Lorraine Daniels, who first got to know Kenny when they both landed in the Bronx from Loughrea 17 years ago. “He loves to talk about them.”
Frank Kenny said: “Rebecca asks all the time: ‘Can I go see daddy today?’ and ‘When’s he coming home?’ “
Visits by the children have been infrequent, though. Even in less serious circumstances, managing a 4-year-old in a hospital is difficult. But Kenny has also been in isolation for much of the time, particularly when his white-blood-cell count has dropped, increasing the danger of infection. At times, family members and close friends have had to wear masks and gowns near him.

Setbacks
At first things went well. He was allowed to go home not long after the transplant. “He was feeling great,” his brother said.
But soon he had the first of what would be many relapses, which have been frightening for his family. “The doctors told us to expect the setbacks,” said his brother.
His lung punctured. Twice it filled with blood. And his heart has stopped on a couple of occasions.
“Joe would tell you himself, it’s worn him down,” Tierney said.
Family members and close friends visit daily “to give him a bit of a push.”
Ten days ago, he had a relapse but has since bounced back.
“I was in with him this morning,” his brother Frank said last week. “He was sitting up and having a bit to eat.”
Family and friends are encouraged to see Kenny battling and the doctors’ optimism keeps them buoyed.
They’re also delighted with the response of the broader community, and are planning a benefit for this Saturday night.
“The Irish community has been asked so many times to help people and they still come up with the goods,” Tierney said. “We were at Gaelic Park selling tickets last week, and people were great once you explained what it was about.”
Support from circles of friends and colleagues beyond the immediate family has been vital too.
“Our employers have been great, to me as well,” Frank Kenny said. “And Catherine can rely on their friends the Creedons for babysitting.”
But most important has been Joe Kenny himself.
“He really has the fight in him,” Daniels said. “If it was me, I’d have given up. But Joe is very strong, up here,” his brother said, touching his temple. “Very strong.”
?
To help defray mounting medical costs, a benefit will take place on this Saturday, Oct. 18, 2003, in Gaelic Park. The doors will open at open at 6 p.m. and raffles will take place at 10 p.m. Maura Fogarty and various other musicians will perform. Tickets of $20 and $100 are on sale and donations can also be make payable to: The Joe Kenny Family Benefit, c/o Niall Conroy, Mustang Harry’s, 352 7th Ave., New York, N.Y. 10001.