Tom Berryhill’s work as a farmer and elected public servant would have ended without a heart transplant. Today, he serves diligently in the California State Assembly on behalf of his constituents. He recently co-authored the state’s revised Uniform Anatomical Gift Act (UAGA) bill and is the only elected official in the U.S. who is a heart transplant recipient.

Tom's Story

Tom Berryhill is a fourth-generation California farmer who has been active in many community groups and business organizations throughout California’s San Joaquin Valley. Like farming, public service runs in his family. Tom’s father, the late Clare Berryhill, was a former lawmaker and state agriculture director. Tom started his first term in the California Legislature in December 2006.

He views an earlier loss, in 1996, as a blessing in disguise. A chronic heart problem turned from bad to worse shortly after that and ultimately led to a need for a new heart. Tom, now 54, underwent a transplant at San Francisco’s California Pacific Medical Center in May 2001. He is currently the only elected official in the United States who is a heart transplant recipient.

“I have all the energy in the world to take on the Assembly,” said Tom. “To be healthy now is really, really exciting. Once someone has gone through what I have, it gives you a different outlook, absolutely. Every single day that I’m here is a day that I wouldn’t have been.”

Remembering the finals days as a race for life, hoping a new heart could be found and transplanted before his kidneys gave out, Tom thought about Samantha, his then-six month-old daughter.

“If I don’t make it, she’s never going to remember who her dad was,” he worried. That also gave me a very strong will to see through a successful transplant.” He remembers praying for a new heart but not wanting a donor to die.

“There is a very sobering reality that we all must face in that position; to know that someone has lost a life to save yours, and that indebtedness is one that can never be repaid,” he commented. “However, because of that sacrifice, I now I have the opportunity to contribute back to California and this country. I am excited to represent a district my dad did 30 years ago, and have another chance to enjoy each day and my family.”

Tom serves as the representative for the 25th California Assembly district and as vice-chairman of the Committee on Human Services. He spent his first year in office advocating for the donor program and heart associations. He noted that “When dealing with organ and tissue transplants, any effort is fulfilling, as the good that comes out of the process is immeasurable.”