It's Time to Rise Up

God of Miracles with Richard and Heather Winesburg Pt 1 - 35

• Kim McIntire • Episode 35

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A phone that won’t pick up. A long drive filled with questions. And a CT scan that stops the room. When Heather traveled to care for her dad, no one expected a sudden collapse, an ER scramble, and the words brain tumor. The first hospital hinted at the worst and the weather grounded any hope of flying her closer to home. That storm rerouted them to Little Rock, where an MRI reframed fear into a plan and a top neurosurgeon stepped into the story.

Richard and Heather open up about the moments between the moments: the limp silence when Heather wouldn’t wake, the chapel where a single line from the Psalms became oxygen, and the way a cousin on staff moved mountains from inside the system. You’ll hear how the diagnosis shifted from terrifying to treatable, why the team delayed surgery to strengthen her lungs, and how community carried the load through texts, late-night calls, and focused prayer. When the tube came out, Heather’s first whispers were questions; her second breath turned into bold witness. If you walked past her door, you got asked about Jesus. Courage, it turns out, can sound like a soft voice in a loud ICU.

This conversation is for anyone navigating a medical crisis or caring from the waiting room. We unpack practical steps—advocacy, informed choices, pacing your energy—and the inner work of anchoring your heart when outcomes are unclear. Expect a story of providence, from a storm that forced the right hospital to an expert surgeon who took the case. Stay through the end as we set up Part Two and the next chapter of recovery and resilience.

If this story strengthens you, subscribe, share it with a friend who needs hope, and leave a quick review so more people can find it. Your words help someone else keep going.

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Kim McIntire:

Hey everyone, welcome to the It's Time to Rise Up Podcast. Happy New Year to all our listeners. We pray you are encouraged and blessed by what is shared today. If you're not familiar with our show, please check out our website at it'stimetoriseup.org where you will find our social media links. And as for our podcast platforms, you can find us on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and everywhere else you find your podcast. I want to welcome Heather and Richard Winesburg into the studio. I'm so glad you guys are here. Thank you.

Richard Winesburg:

Thank you.

Kim McIntire:

You're welcome. Richard and Heather are friends and also part of my church family. They have a miracle story to share with our listeners. And I know it's going to inspire faith for the impossible. And one of the scriptures that really jumps out at me when I think about you guys is Matthew 19, 26. With God, all things are possible. Amen. That's right. And you guys are a God story. So before we jump into the heart of the story, let's just share with our listeners a little bit about you guys. So who wants to share a little bit about yourselves?

Richard Winesburg:

I'll start. So we've been married almost 30 years, and uh we have two sons. Uh our oldest son is married out on his own right now and lives uh up in northern Missouri with his wife. Our youngest son lives at home still, wrapping up college at Missouri Southern, and uh we'll be finishing next semester in the spring.

Kim McIntire:

That's wonderful, you guys.

Heather Winesburg:

How did you meet? We met in second grade. Wow. And so we've been friends all through grade school, middle school, junior high, high school, and then we went to college and we had the wonderful study group, and it got smaller and smaller. And then there were just two people, and their grades were going up.

Richard Winesburg:

And my grades improved significantly.

Kim McIntire:

That is so funny. You were actually studying. We were that's great.

Richard Winesburg:

I was just hanging out with her, but I actually did my homework and studied, so that worked out well for me.

Kim McIntire:

I love that. So you've known each other from second grade until now, almost 30 years of marriage. I would say that's a rare story. That in itself. That's wonderful. And I know you guys are on prayer team at your church. Yes, it's amazing.

Heather Winesburg:

Absolutely.

Kim McIntire:

Okay. Well, I want to begin with just asking this question. Heather, the story starts with you being in Russellville, Arkansas on May 29th of 2025. Yes. And why were you in Russellville, Arkansas?

Heather Winesburg:

That is where my parents live, and my father's health has been, had been declining. And my sister called me and said, I need you to come earlier than what was expected. I was going to go on Monday, um, June the second, but she said, I really need you to come today, which was that Thursday. Um and so I'm staying with my parents, and my brother came down as well, and we were alternating. He would stay up until two o'clock in the morning, and then I would get up at two o'clock in the morning because our father was not resting well. And so we just knew mom was finished with being able to provide home care. He needed assistance.

Kim McIntire:

Yeah.

Heather Winesburg:

And so they were working on getting him to assisted living that following week.

Kim McIntire:

And and how are you feeling? I know emotionally that had to have been really difficult. How were you feeling physically?

Heather Winesburg:

I was fine. Feeling good. Um, I was good. Staying or staying up until 10 o'clock, then getting up at two um to be with him during the early mornings, it it compounded. Sure. Um, but I was able to rest during the day.

Kim McIntire:

Yeah.

Heather Winesburg:

Um, and we knew this was the stage of life he was in.

Kim McIntire:

Right.

Heather Winesburg:

We recognized it. Sure.

Kim McIntire:

So So you're there, you're helping by caring for your dad, not getting a lot of sleep. And you're there a few days, a couple days. Yeah. A few days. A few days. And Richard, you get a phone call. And when you get this phone call, who's on the other end?

Richard Winesburg:

Well, it was it was um not really not really getting a phone call, but I couldn't get through to Heather.

Kim McIntire:

Okay. That day. Thank you for clarifying that.

Richard Winesburg:

So uh Heather and I talk usually in the morning on the way to work or throughout the day, just quick phone calls. And that uh that Monday, I called her and we talked early. She was really tired, wasn't feeling good. I said, Well, you've been up all night, why don't you go back to bed, get some rest. Yeah, I'll call you later. Well, I tried to call the middle of the day, but she texted me, she said, Hey, I'm sitting with dad, call you later. Said, understand. Well, at the end of the day, I get in my truck, heading home from work, and try to call. Couldn't get through. Okay, well, probably with dad, probably, you know, working with him. And uh so the night the night continued, and I would try about every hour or so. I'm thinking, what is going on? So finally, about nine o'clock, she called, she says, I am just not feeling great. Um her sister's gonna take her to the to the ER. I said, Okay, good idea. Thinking, all right, just exhausted, dehydrated, you know, just just just worn down. Sure. And uh I said, okay, call me when you get home. Um so uh she didn't call, but her sister did, probably 1030 or 11, and they said, you know, they didn't really see anything. Uh uh, maybe a certain level was a little elevated, but nothing, nothing that just jumped out at them. I think they gave her some foods and something to help her rest, and she was already asleep. She said once they got to the car, Heather just was out. I said, Okay, I tell you what, I will call you in the morning and uh uh we'll just check on her then, thinking, okay, just needs a good night's rest. And and knowing Heather, when she doesn't feel well, whether it's a cold or sinus infection or something like that, she sleeps and then she bounces back real quickly. So in my mind, that's what she needed to do. So that's kind of where we're at that Monday night. And then uh the next morning, Tuesday morning, I get up, I go to work, um, I'm thinking, okay, no phone call yet, but it's early. So about nine, I try to call. Well, I hear back from uh, or I text with uh her sister, and she says, no, she's still asleep. I thought, okay. Well, then maybe an hour or so later, um, I can't remember if it's April, or her brother Chris that calls and said, Hey, her vitals look good. She's breathing, she's resting. She she she had a rough night. Um, she got sick in the middle of the night, and um, but she's she's just still out resting. I thought, okay. I said, All right, I'm on my way. And at that point, I just thought, I'm gonna get her and bring her home. She needs to be needs to be home to rest, right?

Kim McIntire:

Right.

Richard Winesburg:

So I called my my uh son Samuel, and I just said, Hey, can you get off work? Let's go get mom, because her car was down there too. I needed him to drive her back.

Kim McIntire:

And for context, the distance from where you live to Russellville, Arkansas is how long of a drive?

Richard Winesburg:

Uh a little over three hours.

Kim McIntire:

Okay.

Richard Winesburg:

Yeah. So this is by this time, I don't know, somewhere around lunchtime, eleven or twelve maybe. Uh maybe a ten or eleven. Uh Sam meets me at the house, um, and we just jump in the truck and and head down. Um really didn't pack a bag or anything because in my mind, we're picking her up and we're turning around and heading straight back.

Kim McIntire:

Right.

Richard Winesburg:

So we get there, um, and well, and on the way, I'll back up of the three-hour drive. You know, I'm just kind of wondering what's going on, why is she not waking up? She's still asleep because we're still communicating by text at this point. I'm like, what is going on? So we're praying, right? It's kind of a quiet drive. Um, and um, and my mind I'm just saying, okay, God, what's what's going on here? Please watch over Heather. So we get there, and uh, I remember we pull in the driveway, I said, all right, let's go get mom. And uh we go into the house, and Heather is still uh in her mom's bed, uh in her pajamas, and just out, sleeping hard. I mean, just not not uh not aware of anything, not responding to anything. I I would I would hold her and she was just limp, still breathing, and yell I would, I, you know, I tried to tickle her, I tried to pinch her, I was yelling, I was trying to do anything to get a response and nothing. And you know, and her her her mom and sister and brother were all right there and Sam and and uh so I just I looked at April and I said, well, okay, let's call the ambulance because nothing's working here and this is just odd. So we call the ambulance and uh they arrived shortly. They try to get her to respond and and then finally just say, okay, we need to we need to load her up. And uh so they put her on the uh on the the stretcher there and and get her into the ambulance and we all hop into our vehicles and follow them down. Uh so we get to this hospital, a small hospital, small town there. And uh so they they take Heather in, and um, so we're just in the waiting room at this point. It's me and Samuel and my sister-in-law April. Um at that time, her mom was still helping with her dad and everything going on there. So it was just the three of us. Uh April's husband soon followed and showed up there. So we're in the hospital, um, and then the uh uh they get her, they get her checked in, they run a CT scan, and uh the doctor comes and gets me. So we're we're all just kind of standing around Heather in this ER room. And and I'll never forget, I can still picture it today, he says, we did a CT scan, she has a large mass on the left side of her brain. We believe it is a um a malignant tumor. So when he said that, I I I mean, everything stopped, you know. It's one of these surreal moments. I I I couldn't comprehend what he said. I heard what he said, but just things just started, the world started spinning, and or the room did, and I just thought, that can't be. I I we just talked the other day. We had lunch before she went down together. That was our our last time together. We had we had a good lunch, and uh I just thought this can't be. And um that's when the enemy started attacking and getting in in my ear, like, okay, well, she's gone. There's nothing we can do. And I just remember saying, Okay, God, what do we do? And you know, the look on Sam's face, he was just overcome with emotions. April was too. It was just it was just a horrible time right there. And I was like, what do we do? How do we handle this? What happens? And um, so started to talk to the doctor, and he said, Well, we we she needs to see a neurosurgeon, and we don't have anybody with that capability here at this hospital. Uh he goes, Where where are you from? I said, Well, we live in Joplin, Missouri. I said, We got two great hospitals up there. And he said, Okay, I'm gonna get on the phone and we're going to start trying to see if we can get her air vac to one of them. And this is this is what's interesting as we look back, there's many points where God shows up through this whole story. And um, so he comes back and he says, Hey, there's storms moving in from Kansas into southwest Missouri. They can't fly there. I thought, because in my mind I thought, we just gotta get home, right? If we get home, we can get healed, we can get better. There's just there's just safety and peace at home.

Kim McIntire:

Right.

Richard Winesburg:

We can't get home. Okay, so uh I said, well, what about Springfield? It's an hour away. No, they won't fly that way. Okay, what about uh, you know, uh Northwest Arkansas? No, they won't go that way. He said, I've got an option of Baptist Health in Little Rock, or we can try Fort Smith. I said, is Baptist available? He said, yes. I said, let's go. He goes, well, we can keep trying. I said, no, she needs help now. Let's let's load her up and uh get on the helicopter. And uh so we we started that process. And um so as they started load, you know, getting Heather ready to be transported in her first helicopter flight uh to she uh uh I I just remember the compassion I saw from the people in in the ER as we were leaving. They just you could see the look on their face, like the news that we had just received, and just the compassion, which which stood out to me there. Uh it was it was a great, they were very good people and very helpful uh in such a tragic time.

Kim McIntire:

What a blessing.

Richard Winesburg:

So um uh Heather is his Heather takes off, and you know, for us it's an hour drive. It probably took her 20 minutes. So she was there long before we got there. And uh so we're in the parking lot, and I said, Okay, uh April, we'll see you there. We're gonna head there now. So she and and her husband and her daughters, my our nieces, were gonna meet us there. And um we get in the car, and I just, you know, Sam and I, we haven't eaten all day, and I just said, Hey, are you hungry? He goes, Yeah, I'm I'm really hungry. I said, Well, let's grab some food on the way out. So we stopped and got a sandwich. I couldn't eat. Um, I tried to drive. I got 15, 20 miles down the road, and I just physically got sick. I I I just said, Hey, I need, or I pulled over, I said, Yeah, I need you to drive. And I I stepped out of the truck and got some air and then stepped back in, and I just said, I'll tell you where to go when we get closer, but just head this way. And he was a trooper, he did a great job. He just stepped in for me. I was just I was just battling some some tough times there. And um so I remember probably about 45 minutes of just laying back in my seat and just praying. I thought, okay, that's the only thing I can do at this point is just pray.

Kim McIntire:

Yeah.

Richard Winesburg:

I don't remember what I prayed at that point. Um but just continue to sought seek after God and just say, okay, you're you're our only help here right now. There's nothing we can do. And just praying for God to get us in the right place. Why couldn't we get closer to home? But all right, God, you must be in this. Well, we get to Little Rock, and by this time, I don't know, it's seven, round maybe six or seven at night, and um I get back to the uh Sam and I park away away from the ER, but we run up there, and uh he goes, I forgot something in the truck. I said, Okay, I'm gonna go on in and find mom. So just tell them you need to get back there, uh, that your mom's back in the ER. He goes, Okay, so when I get back there, uh Heather's cousin and a friend of ours from high school was there, and and it's one of those things like this was such comfort to me uh to have uh her name's Amber. And Amber told uh she worked at the hospital in a different department, but she told everybody though that she was Heather's sister. And uh, you know, if you know Amber, that's that's uh she'll she'll she'll fight her way back there. But just to see her, and and she gave me a big hug, and it was just a relief at that moment. It's like, okay, this was this was this was comforting.

Kim McIntire:

Of course, yeah.

Richard Winesburg:

And she said, listen, I've already called and and reached out to a few people. The neurosurgeon's here, I've already reached out to somebody I know. I'm calling, telling them that my cousin's here and they got to be a part of this case, and and that just made me feel so good. That like, okay, we've got somebody here battling for us, and um, it was just really reassuring.

Kim McIntire:

That's another one of those points where it was so evident God was in it, right?

Richard Winesburg:

It was. It was a moment of peace that I needed at that moment in time. And and um, you know, I I think I've told Amber, but I just I was like, you don't know how much that meant to me, you being there.

Kim McIntire:

That's right.

Richard Winesburg:

And uh, you know, we don't get to see Amber very often. Uh, but uh it just was it was nice to to have that family member there and help us out. But uh and also she was working really hard for Heather at that point, which was great. So we're in the ER, they're they're continuing to run their tests, their scans, and um you know, we're waiting on her to get into uh ICU at that point. Um I'll I'll back up a little bit. I missed this part here, but whenever whenever I heard the the uh the brain tumor word, the cancer word at uh the first ER, I I got in the truck and I just started I called my brother. I called um my best friend who lives in Arkansas. I called um I started sending out text messages, and uh I you know I reached out to, I don't know, three or four or five people and and the prayers began from there.

Kim McIntire:

That's right. That's right.

Richard Winesburg:

I my brother didn't pick up the phone, but I just I left him a message. Um I he probably was still at work, but I just said, Hey, Heather's in trouble, and I explained kind of what was going on. He called me a few minutes later. He said, All I heard was Heather was in trouble, and I called. And I said, Here's what's going on. And uh and uh he was there the next day for us. Um my friend Billy was there the next day for us. So many people that were that were praying and just word spread. And as I would think of somebody, I would try to call from previous churches, you know, families and things like that. And I remember calling our um uh Keelan, our uh he was uh the worship pastor at our our church when we were in Arkansas, and I called, I said, Hey Keelan, he goes, he said, Hey Richard, we we just heard we're praying right now. So people were already praying, you know, and that that was that was comforting too to know that at uh you know in in Arkansas and Missouri, word was getting out in our in our own church family, letting people know, and and uh because then I started getting text messages and calls throughout the night, which was comforting. So, you know, in my workplace, uh everybody was great. The folks I worked with there were all very concerned. But uh so that's going on while we're traveling and working our way down to Little Rock and while we're there. Fast forward to probably, I don't know, somewhere between 10 and 11 that night. Um Heather is in ICU and uh they the ER nurse told me she said, Okay, wait right here. We're gonna get her settled in, and then we'll someone will come get you. Well, I think that someone forgot or got busy, right? So we waited and waited and and and they were busy. Sure. Um I just was at the point. I told Sam, I said, wait right here, because our other son and his wife are on their way in, and they're gonna probably be there around midnight. So I said, wait here for Griffin. I'm gonna go find them. So I'm meandering, and this is a huge hospital, so I'm just wandering around, and I finally come to this uh this nurse at this desk, and she looks up at me like, What are you doing back here? And I was thinking I was probably gonna be escorted out, but I just said, Hi, my name is Richard. I'm looking for my wife, Heather Weinsberg, she was just brought back here. So she looks it up, she goes, Oh yeah, down the hall on your left. And I go down the hall, and and there's Heather, and oh, she looks so much better because they got her cleaned up in a in a nice, fresh gown. She looked peaceful, she looked rested. And uh so the uh the uh ICU nurse was there just checking on her about hey, and she said, What happened? And so I kind of explained to her what our situation was from there. So I talked to them for a little while. Um we uh they they gave me her jewelry. It took forever to get her rings off, she didn't want to let them go. But um, so we did that, and then I'm guessing it's around 1231 by this point. Um, there's nothing more we can do. Um my sons are out in the waiting room, and I just said, okay, uh, we we found a hotel just down the street and uh checked in for the night. And uh I just said, What time do you open in the morning? And she said, Well, visiting hours begin at I think 8. I said, I'll see you then. And um so we go check into our room, we we get we get we just all pile in one room and um just crash, just go to sleep, or try to. I don't know that I slept much that night, but just lay there and prayed. So the next morning I got up and um I usually get up early anyway, but I haven't been sleeping, so I thought I'm just gonna get up, get a shower, and get ready for the day. And I just told my my son, I said, Hey, I'm heading on down. So meet you there. No hurry. Uh uh something's going on, I'll certainly call you, but just you know, take your time getting in. Y'all know y'all are y'all are worn out, so we'll see you soon. So we we get there and um I park in the back of the parking lot. And I look at the hospital, and I got mad now. I thought, okay, you're not gonna pick on my wife. And and it and I just started praying. And then I started shouting as I'm walking through the parking lot.

Kim McIntire:

Good for you.

Richard Winesburg:

And um I'm praying out loud, and I'm I am I'm saying every scripture that my mom taught me. I am praying over the hot not only Heather, but everybody in the hospital. And uh that uh that God's gonna go before us and do great things this day, and I'm just I'm just I'm just armoring up, right? And uh I remember walking by somebody that were out on the sidewalk early, and I just kept on going and they're hearing me. I thought, okay, well, maybe they need to hear something out there. That's right. Who knows, right?

Kim McIntire:

Amen.

Richard Winesburg:

I get in there and it's still way before eight o'clock. I just thought, I I'm not gonna sit in the hotel room, I'm gonna go down. And as I go through the lobby, before you kind of go around the corner to where the uh ICU rooms or the wing is, there's the chapel. I thought I'm going to church now. I've got a few hours probably before Heather. I can go see Heather. And I remember I walked through the through the little door there, and there's a scripture in Psalm says, Where does my help come from?

Kim McIntire:

Yes.

Richard Winesburg:

My help comes from the Lord. So I had church that morning, and uh I just stayed in that chapel and prayed and I don't know for how long, for a while. And then I finally got tired of waiting. I said, Okay, it's not eight o'clock, but I'm going back there. So when a door opened, I just started finding my way back there. And uh so I did, and and everybody was kind, and I I didn't get in the way, but uh so we'll go back there and I'm sitting with the uh sitting with Heather. Nurses come in, they said, you know, we did an MRI last night. The doctor is in surgery this morning. Um he should be wrapping up mid-morning, and we'll be able to visit with you then. Great. So we'll get a better idea as far as what are we gonna do, when are we gonna operate, let's get this taken care of. And uh so that's that's kind of the plan for that day. And this is Wednesday at this point. Um throughout the morning, my my family shows up. Um they're in the waiting room. Uh April and her family shows up. Uh uh Bill, my brother, and my niece show up. So we had we had a lot of folks and family and support in there, and that was that was really comforting. The distraction was good. Uh we would take tyrants going back and see Heather. They all wanted to go see her and pray for her. And uh so we were just we were just constantly doing that. So um sometime midday, maybe one or two, uh um April and I were there with Heather, and the uh the surgeon's nurse comes in. A couple of those uh ladies come in, and they're like, okay, we're on the edge of our seat here, what's going on? She said, All right, well, we've got the MRI, and uh we believe the tumor is benign.

Kim McIntire:

Praise God. Praise God.

Richard Winesburg:

So there was God moment number three, right? That's right. I I April and I grabbed each other, we're standing beside each other, and I just I just had this moment, I looked at her, I said, that's the good thing, right?

Kim McIntire:

Amen.

Richard Winesburg:

Yeah. She goes, Yes. Yes, yes, that's what we want to hear. I was just so thankful. Thank you, God. Thank you, God. So they she continued to tell us a little bit about that. She said, however, this tumor is really large. Um it was it was odd shape, but picture the size of a tennis ball. And uh that's what they were describing to us. And they said, we just do not have the the uh abilities here to get it out. I thought, okay, well, what do we do? And uh but she said, but there's a doctor across town who specializes in these things. We sent him the scans, he's looked at it, and he said he would take her case. There's God number four, right?

Kim McIntire:

That's right. God showed up.

Richard Winesburg:

That's why we couldn't fly home, because we need to fly this way, right?

Kim McIntire:

So um Isn't he one of the top-ranking neurosurgeons?

Richard Winesburg:

Yeah, as as we started doing some research on this guy, Dr. Christ, uh out of Sherwood, Arkansas. Uh, yeah, and even friends were texting us that, you know, people that they knew had brain surgeries or something like that, that this guy was really, really good. So they said, Hey, do you want to do that? I said, Let's load up and go. So um Heather gets her second helicopter ride. And we all hurry across town. It took her five minutes. It probably took us 20 to 30 minutes to get over to uh St. Vincent Hospital. And uh I I remember as they were getting everybody ready, I mean, it was scrambling. They were working so fast and so hard to get her up. I ran out the hallway. I said, okay, everybody, head over to here. This is where we're gonna go. This is our plan. And well, after we told them that that the tumor is is is not threatening. We still need to get it out, but you know, such a joyous moment in the in the uh in the waiting room with everybody there. But uh I said, okay, y'all, y'all head on over there. I've got to sign papers to get her over there, and I'll I'll be right behind you. And this poor lady, she was just scrambling, working so hard to get everything. She said, I just need you to sign some papers, and and I did, and and but she didn't tell me I was done. And she was just she finally said, Is there anything else I can do for you? I said, Well, I thought you said there was more papers. Oh no, honey, I'm sorry. You go. I said, Thank you so much, everybody. I'm released. We're heading over, and I ran to my truck uh as fast as I could and and and got across town. So uh again, going through the ER, getting Heather settled in, finally getting to her room, and um again, everybody praying, um the support from family of friends. My phone is still just lighting up with uh text and emails. So we get her settled in, and the next morning um we meet with Dr. Krish, or he comes through, and and when he walks in, he has ten people with him. He's got an entourage of all these support doctors and nurses. It's it was very intimidating. But the the nurses in ICU were so helpful to to me during this time. They said, You ask any question you have, he will stop and listen to you. I was like, I don't know what to ask. And and uh they coached me through some of those things, which was so helpful. They were such great people, such great care. So we worked through that, and uh, I just said, Okay, so when are we doing surgery? He goes, We need to wait. We need her to get stronger, and um we need her her lungs to get stronger, and uh I've got to study this because this is a all-day type surgery. Okay, yes, sir. So the next you know, until that Friday, Heather was on a Vent two and uh was was out, was not not awake.

Kim McIntire:

And and had not been right since the time she was taken to ER, right? So this entire time, Heather, you're unaware of anything that's going on, is that correct? That's correct.

Heather Winesburg:

That Monday, June the second, I was talking, I was walking, I don't remember it at all. None of that do I remember.

Kim McIntire:

And you had had no symptoms that would indicate that you would have a mass the size of a tennis ball on the left side of your brain?

Heather Winesburg:

No, I had no idea. Until I look back and go, oh, maybe that was a symptom.

Kim McIntire:

Sure. Sure, but in the moment you didn't know. Exactly. Right.

Heather Winesburg:

Yeah.

Kim McIntire:

So all of this time you're not communicating with Heather. You may be talking to her, but she's not responding to you. Is that correct?

Richard Winesburg:

That's right.

Kim McIntire:

Okay. I just want to give context to that. Okay.

Richard Winesburg:

Yeah, I can't.

Kim McIntire:

She's not conscious. No.

Richard Winesburg:

And and that's that was a heavy point because as as I mentioned earlier, Heather and I talk often throughout the day, um, whether it's a quick quick phone call as I'm driving across town for work or whatever. Um and that was one of the heaviest things, is like I I didn't get to talk to you today. And when he said that, you know, that first time we heard that that this could be a cancerous tumor, I thought, I haven't got to talk to her. And and that hurt. And uh that just at that point, you know, the enemy's telling me you're never gonna get to talk to her. And uh so um once Dr. Chris saw her and had a game plan, let her rest. She developed a little bit of pneumonia, so they started treating it. And um and then really just letting her rest.

Kim McIntire:

And how long was that rest? Was did they say, you know, for this many days she needs to rest, or was that an unknown?

Richard Winesburg:

It was an unknown at that point because they were they were treating the pneumonia, so there was a lot of respiratory therapists coming through out the day and the night and and working with her to get her lungs strong for that surgery because it was going to be a a lengthy surgery. Um so that was I think Wednesday night she got into that at St. Vincent, and surgery was the following Tuesday. So almost a week. Almost a week. Um she started getting stronger, and by Friday, that Friday, so two or three days later, they pulled the tube out. So she really the only thing that she was on at that point was anti-seizure medicine and a feeding tube, because she hasn't eaten at this point in several days.

Kim McIntire:

Right.

Richard Winesburg:

Um maybe an IV just for fluids to to administer some medicine. So that was it.

Kim McIntire:

And then as as they do that as she's preparing for surgery on that Tuesday, had she communicated at all up to that point?

Richard Winesburg:

So that that was that was interesting. Uh Friday, when the tube came out, later that day she opened her eyes and looked at me. She couldn't talk, right? I mean, because that's that's rough on your your larynx and everything, from what I understand. But we could see each other.

Kim McIntire:

Right.

Richard Winesburg:

And I could talk to her and she could look at me, and I knew she was hearing me.

Kim McIntire:

Right.

Richard Winesburg:

And uh I had to learn to read lips because she would mouth to me, and what she was saying was, why am I here? Or where am I? And then why am I here? So I was I was anxious about telling her all of that, but I thought, no, she needs to know. Um, so during one of those, and I mean I would get to her face, face to face, just so I could try to understand and communicate with her, you know, where am I and why am I here? So that and that took 10 or 15 minutes of me trying to understand because she was so patient, she would say, she would just shake her head no. Okay, is this what you said? Yes. Okay. So we finally got to that point. And I just said, Well, get ready for this. But you you collapsed earlier in the week, and the doctors found a large tumor on your brain. And when I said that, she kind of looked at me and bugged her eyes out like, What?

Kim McIntire:

Wow.

Richard Winesburg:

Uh and uh So you knew she was comprehending just from her reaction. A little bit. I I went through this again the next day. Okay. I I told her again the next day when she was a little more aware, because again, she's coming off this meds, because as soon after I told her that, she went back to sleep. But was able to tell everybody, hey, I we communicated. She heard me, uh, we're making progress. Um so that was that was so significant that I got to communicate with her. That was the first time since that Monday. Monday morning was the last time I talked to her at that point. So so thankful. And um, so the next day we get up, and now it's just a very, very soft whisper, just so soft. But we go through that. Why am I here? Where am I at again? And she's like, okay, and and to Heather's credit and her faith, she never cracked when I told her that you've got a brain tumor. You know, I I in my mind I thought, you know, she's gonna get emotional, she'll get upset, never shed a tear. Um It's incredible. It it really was. I was just so thankful for that that I thought, okay, her willpower is strong, her faith is strong.

Kim McIntire:

And her mental state is strong.

Richard Winesburg:

Yeah.

Kim McIntire:

Because they say that's everything. I mean, faith and your mental state.

Richard Winesburg:

Yeah, completely.

Kim McIntire:

Yeah.

Richard Winesburg:

So as that weekend progressed, um, she was able to whisper louder and louder and have have conversations. You know, I think that Sunday morning we just dialed in church and on my phone and and um put it right there. I've got a picture of her laying in her bed back, and I've got my phone just propped up on the pillow right beside her, listening to one of the services.

Kim McIntire:

And uh And do you have memories of of these things? No, do you remember the picture? Just the picture, but you don't remember these conversations or him communicating these things to you. No. Okay. Wow.

Richard Winesburg:

Yeah. So again, so thankful that we're able to talk um and and strength. And then when she could talk, watch out. Um you know, now now she could pray out loud and now she could she could uh talk to God, and I know I knew she was, but I'm just saying it was it was uh she knew God was working in her life. And if you walked near her room, do you know Jesus? Do you know the Lord? Yeah, let me tell you what God's doing for me, you know. And it was and it was uh bold witness, right? It really was.

Heather Winesburg:

It didn't matter who was coming in my room. I believe you're time it was. I believe you. Do you know the Lord? Let me tell you what he's doing. Amen. Wow, that's incredible.

Richard Winesburg:

It was so I mean at that point I thought, okay, she's she's got fight in her, and uh God's gonna continue to do some great things. So, you know, as we as we go through that whole process, um, just you know, the people that God surrounded us with and and the prayer, the the the staff at that hospital were amazing. Uh again, continued phone calls, support, love church, uh, from our church, our work families, um, you know, old friends, new friends, just was it was it was blowing me away how much I told Heather, and uh many times she was still out, but I would talk to her and I would just say, There are so many people praying for you. I think most of Arkansas and Missouri are praying for you right now. That's right. I think your name is being in the throne room of God as much as anything at this point in time.

Kim McIntire:

Praise the Lord.

Richard Winesburg:

It was it was just and you could feel it.

Kim McIntire:

Yeah. And then um, and I do think too, I want to just add that if you know someone who's going through a crisis, don't hesitate to send a text or leave a voicemail or make a phone call or send an email because if they're sitting in a hospital waiting room day after day after day, those are like a lifeline, especially if you're hours away from home and friends and family can't just drop into the hospital anytime they want or your church family. So I just want to speak that into the listeners. Yes. Reach out to people when they're in crisis. You may be that one voice they hear that day that encourages them to not give up hope, you know. So I just wanted this speak into that.

Richard Winesburg:

I'm glad you said that. And and that is so true because people would say, I I know you're busy, I don't want to bother you. And they don't know what's going on in the room. But I I agree with you, Kim, that hey, if they can't talk, they'll push you to voicemail, right? Yeah. And and there were times I was talking to a doctor or a nurse and someone would call. Yeah. But it was just, oh, that was so uplifting and just so encouraging. And I remember uh a friend from work called and and he goes, Oh, hey, I I didn't expect to get you. I said, No, I want to talk to you. And and uh it was Chad, and I was just like so glad to hear from him. And at that point in point in time, so great point. If you know someone going through that, reach out and talk to them. Yeah, if they can't talk right then, they'll let you know, but for sure, or they'll call you back. So that was the support was was overwhelming.

Kim McIntire:

And I'm glad that you're emphasizing that. So there's a lot more to the story, and so we're gonna have part two coming up for our next episode. So we want you to be sure and tune in to part two of Richard and Heather Weinsberg's interview. But for today, we're gonna say thank you for just taking your time to be with us listeners. We would love to hear your feedback. Please rate us or leave a review on Apple Podcast. We pray God's grace and peace will be with you all in Jesus' name.

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Kim McIntire

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Amber Sampson

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Holly Hoyer

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Keli Keener

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Kelli Carter

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Kristi Marion

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Daniel Moore

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