Matthew Horn has a wife, two children and work that he looks forward to doing.

What he doesn’t have is a healthy liver.

Horn, 49, is hopeful for a transplant after having been diagnosed in 2017 with Hemachromatosis, a progressive liver disease.

“I’ve been on the (transplant) list since 2019,” he said. “They say it can take five to 10 years.”

But Horn and his wife, Judy, don’t believe he can wait that long.

He is having symptoms of liver failure.

Most days, he becomes fatigued, even exhausted.

As he made it clear through social media: “There are also a lot of health issues associated with this disease. It is now affecting all parts of our life and my work.”

He realizes that getting a new liver, either from a living donor or one from a deceased person, takes time.

Of the more than 100,000 people awaiting liver transplants, just 14,000 receive one each year.

Horn takes a number of medications, including for hepatitis and to counteract the effects of high iron.

He has developed diabetes over the years.

Ideally, he’d like to be around to enjoy life and all it has to offer for a long time to come.

“He has lived longer than expected already,” his mother, Karen Horn, said.

She too is hopeful for a transplant.

Unfortunately, no family members are a match for a transplant for Matt.

“We have had people get tested who don’t qualify as donors,” his mother said.

Through it all, Matthew keeps a positive attitude, despite all he’s been through.

At age 2, he was rescued by nuns off the streets of Vietnam.

“He was not expected to live when we adopted him,” Karen said.

Despite that, Matthew grew up like many American kids, with a good home and reason to be hopeful.

Many people know him from his work as a bus driver, including for St. John Neumann, his alma mater.

He is an avid St. John Neumann sports fan and also loves to watch football.

Once he receives a transplant, he will not be able to drive for four to six weeks.

And, he will need to go through daily testing for many weeks following the transplant.

With a successful transplant, life most assuredly will go on, although there will still be challenges.

“My wife will need assistance while she is trying to be both my caregiver and work,” he said.

Matthew wants to get the word out regarding the need for more people to be organ donors.

Livers from living donors can last 15 to 20 years while those from a deceased donor are good for about seven years.

His wife is looking to host a fundraiser and awareness event at some point with the proceeds helping to offset transplant costs.