She taught with her whole heart. Now, a Cambridge teacher needs one to survive

At 43, Amy Hagedorn-Butler spends her days at Toronto General Hospital, walking the halls, lifting weights and waiting for a phone call that could save her life.

The kindergarten teacher who grew up in Cambridge and now lives in Brantford, is on a transplant list for a new heart.

“I’m super grateful because not everybody who needs a heart transplant gets one,” Butler said. “There was a significant amount of time where they didn’t know if I would even qualify. That was terrifying because of course the alternative is death.”

Butler’s heart problems began the day she was born with a rare defect at Cambridge Memorial Hospital, after which she was rushed to Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Kids and underwent an open-heart surgery at only four-years-old.

“My parents were told that I wouldn’t make