Mark Kessler

Type of Donation:       heart

Age and Location:      Age 61 – New York, NY

Date of Donation:           11/08/2024

Sponsor:                      Honored by UCLA Health

MARK’S STORY

Mark Kessler was born on March 2, 1964, in New York City to German immigrant parents, but moved back to Germany with his family at the age of four. He grew up in Munich, where he completed his schooling and developed an early passion for travel. As a teenager, he saved for a Eurail pass, exploring France, Italy, England, and Ireland during the summers, and spending winters skiing in the Alps of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

To support his love of travel, he began working weekends at the Sheraton Hotel in Munich as a busboy and bellhop, quickly earning more responsibilities as management recognized his potential. This experience sparked his lifelong career in hospitality management, which has taken him around the world—working in Germany, the UAE, Egypt, Thailand, and across the United States in cities including San Francisco, Honolulu, Los Angeles, Palm Springs, and Long Beach.

In 1994, he met his wife, a Thai national, in Dubai, and the two have been together for more than 30 years.

In 2007, while living in Hawaii, he was diagnosed with congestive heart failure, though medication allowed him to stay active for many years. In 2024, his condition worsened, and after a defibrillator surgery at UCI Long Beach, he was transferred to UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center, where he underwent evaluation for a heart transplant.

Following a successful recovery and discharge in December 2024, he began walking daily, gradually regaining strength and endurance. As of July 1, 2025, he proudly returned to full-time work—grateful for renewed health, the support of his family, and the second chance his transplant has given him to live and thrive.