Goshen College’s baseball assistant coach Mike Brouillette suffered a heart attack on the morning of Jan. 22 at his brother-in-law’s house in Warsaw, Indiana. 

Brouillette went down minutes after complaining about back pain and was immediately taken by an ambulance to the Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne. There, the medical team administered defibrillation 31 times and performed CPR for approximately 43 minutes. He was then placed on a ventilator and a temporary pacemaker for a day and a half before returning to a steady heartbeat.

The doctors referred to it as “a complete miracle,” his wife said, Mandi Brouillette, considering the 90-minute trip to the hospital. 

On Feb. 2, after 10 days on dialysis due to temporary kidney damage, Mike Brouillette was discharged from Lutheran Hospital. However, five days following his return home he declined once again and was re-hospitalized at Goshen Hospital, where he was exposed to a blood transfusion due to internal bleeding in his intestinal tract. 

On Tuesday, he was released from the hospital and is now at home. “He’s recovering well. His kidneys have rebounded, we don’t think we’ll need permanent dialysis,” Mandi Brouillette said, “His heart is slowly recovering function.”

The assistant coach also suffered cracked ribs after the aggressive CPR procedures, but according to Mandi Brouillette, he describes the pain as “level two, and it only happens when he sneezes or coughs.” 

Head coach Brad Stoltzfus said he and his coaching staff set up a meal train webpage, where “people have been volunteering to deliver dinner, cook meals and bring them to [Brouillette’s] house.” The webpage also allows users to donate money to help cover medical bills, which has already raised $4,325 over 11 days.

“He plans to be totally back to normal by golf-season, so I think that’s a good goal,” Mandi Brouillette said. “Maybe by April, he’ll be golf worthy.” Mike Brouillette is under constant heart therapy and is slowly getting back to walking. 

“My big thank you to the Goshen College community and especially the baseball team and coaches for their support of Mike during this time,” said Mandi Brouillette.

To support the Brouillette family, visit: mealtrain.com/trains/5l7ngz.