A Gift of Giving....

Marlyn and Max had no way of knowing what medical care they would need when they started their life together in 1946. They left South Dakota to live in Faribault where Max invested in a car dealership business. Twelve years and six children later, the 36-year-old found himself in St. Marys Hospital facing the first of multiple heart surgeries. That was a difficult time for Max.

It wasn’t easy for Marlyn, either. With six children to care for and a husband in the hospital an hour away, her days were long and her nights short. But somehow, Marlyn found her way to his side.

“I never missed a day visiting him,” she recalls. “I couldn’t
afford a babysitter, so our 11-year-old daughter cared for the
rest of the children. I would get up early, fix meals for them,
arrange for their care and then drive to Rochester after dusk.

“Back in those days, they didn’t let children visit hospitals,” Marlyn says. “We got a call that Max needed a second, emergency surgery. I brought the three oldest children, and they stood on the lawn and waved up at Max in the hospital room.”

Max recalls seeing his children standing on the
lawn, waving to him. His condition was serious. His doctors told him to make sure he had a will prepared. But Max is a
survivor — he not only made it home, but went back
to work, with Marlyn driving him back and forth.

“I had accumulated a considerably large bill,” Max says. “I met someone there to arrange for payments, and he asked me what I could afford. I told him I could pay $100 per month. He was a very perceptive man, and knowing I had a large family, he suggested a more reasonable payment of $25. We’ll never forget his sensitivity and concern for our family.

” While in the hospital, Max made a business deal that brought his family to Mankato with the decision to take over a Pontiac and Oldsmobile dealership. That was in 1960. It didn’t take long for the Heintz family to make Mankato home.

“I’m so glad that people can stay here in Mankato close to their families and get the quality care they need,” Max says.

Marlyn recently completed treatment for cancer, which she was able to do at Immanuel St. Joseph’s Regional Cancer Center. “I was so grateful to not have to spend hours traveling each day,” she says.

Now retired, Max and Marlyn love Mankato and stay here year-round. The Toyota dealership that Max developed through his career is now owned and operated by their son, Ben. They also enjoy spending time with their recently adopted dog, who also answers to the name of Max.

But they know what it’s like to need quality health care, and understand first hand how difficult traveling can be when someone is sick.

“We both agreed 100 percent with the decision to support the Generations of Care Campaign,” Marlyn shares. “I thought it was a wonderful idea.”

“We’re done with the business, and we know where we stand financially,” Max says. “We’ve had a wonderful life. Mankato is a great place to raise a family, to live — and even to be sick. When we heard about the new heart and cancer center, I thought — that’s it —I wanted to give.”