Unyielding Hope

TERRY GURNO’S STORY

There is a lot to be said about Terry Gurno. If you’ve lived in this community for any amount of time, you probably know him as a speaker, a business coach, a trainer, an entrepreneur, or a realtor. You may also know him as Nancy’s husband, Chelsea, Levi, and Ali’s dad or Landon, Penelope, Hope, and Rosie’s Papa. Maybe you know him from his incredible Ironman journey.

I’ve been able to be present at two of Terry’s business coachings so I knew what a powerful and impactful speaker he is. However, it wasn’t until an hour Zoom call with him and Nancy on a frigid day in February that I truly learned the depth of his personal story and the immense strength of him and his family. I think at one point or another, we all had tears in our eyes and I left the conversation feeling not only inspired but full of hope.

I hope you feel the same way I felt after our conversation. My wish for you is that Terry’s story can inspire you and you can find gratitude in the smallest of moments and discover new hope every morning in something as simple and as beautiful as the sunrise.

The Terry we know now is a far cry from Terry as a child. One of five children, his father abandoned his family when Terry was just 10, after years of abuse and alcoholism. His mother, a server, worked double shifts to support her family but rarely saw them. When he graduated highschool he was functionally illiterate after suffering from learning disabilities. He had no path or plan but he had a vision.

Throughout his tumultuous childhood, Terry discovered what would get him through to this day, the power of hope. Terry always found a way to find hope- he always found something to look forward to. “I think from the time

I was a little boy I always had something to be hopeful for to get me through times in my life that were scary and incredibly pain- filled. I just focused on what was next.”

After finding his own faith and personal relationship with Jesus, life turned around for him. In 1982, he met Nancy. Almost 39 years married (in June) and three children (and 4 grandbabies) later, you can feel how in love they are just being in the same room with them. Terry’s family is his greatest triumph especially going into fatherhood not having any idea how to be a parent due to his upbringing. Asking himself “what would I have wanted as a child?” is what provided his children with a strong and supportive father and the foundation of what they lovingly refer to as “Team Gurno”.

In 2014 - Team Gurno took to our local Ironman course cheering Levi on as he completed his first Ironman. Terry was inspired by this and put his motivation over his fear and doubt and signed up for the following year. That race day, in 2015, was 108 degrees, Terry was disqualified at mile 90. After telling his son, “I am done today, but I am not finished,” Terry re-committed to the next year, this time without Levi running next to him but “cheering for you the way you cheered for me my first year.” It came down to the wire, with Levi running alongside him the last 14 miles. Terry finished that night as the final finisher with less than two minutes left. (Read more about Terry and Levi’s Ironman journey in their book, Unfinished Business.)

With the goal to complete another Ironman, Terry set out last February on his bike only to find he was out of breath after one mile. Chalking it up to age and being out of shape, Terry pushed through until Labor Day weekend when it took him 20 minutes to catch his breath after a short walk. His trip to the cardiologist turned into an immediate ER visit, and after numerous tests, Terry was scheduled for a “dye test” to see where the blood was flowing and where it stops. These tests usually take an hour or more, Terry was out in 28 minutes. “That’s when Nancy knew something was wrong.”

Open heart surgery for his five blockages was scheduled for two weeks later. “I was nervous and I was scared. There was nothing about this that I wanted to go forward with.” Even after all the preparation from the surgical team at Kootenai Health, nothing could have prepared Terry and Nancy for the feelings after the surgery. “ I remember seeing Nancy there, and I couldn’t talk and I wanted her to know how much I loved her. I tried to look into her eyes as deeply as I could and I squeezed her hand 3 times ( code for I love you) , just seeing her was such a relief for me.”

A week after heading home, Terry developed a cough that lasted for a month. And after heading into rehab with severe pain and swelling in his left leg, Terry was admitted back into the hospital with a blood clot in his thigh and two in his right lung and one in his liver. After leaving again with new medications and a new excitement for the rehabilitation process, Terry passed out a week later at his cardiac therapy appointment.

He awoke, once again in the emergency room, where he learned three of his five bypasses had failed. His cardiologist went back in and placed two stents in his heart. “I was so grateful. I felt like they had performed a miracle.” Terry recovered and was sent home where he immediately started having severe abdominal pain. “It was debilitating.” After a couple weeks of pain and finally starting to feel sick, Terry drove himself to the ER.

After a CAT scan, the doctors found a sizable obstruction in his colon. After hearing the doctor say, “If you were my dad or my best friend, I would say go directly to a room and get this figured out” Terry was back at Kootenai Health. After a colonoscopy, a surgery and a lot of waiting, Terry was alone in his hospital room when his doctor entered with the news no one wanted to hear. Stage 3 colon cancer. “I was all alone. I felt very alone. I couldn’t believe it.” Thankfully, Nancy, ever by his side, was able to take him home, where he wanted to be most, the next day.

Even through all of this, the biggest emotion Terry felt was gratitude. “For the doctors, the nurses, my home, my wife. If I could have one more day at home with Nancy, that would be enough for me.”

Since then, Terry has lived every day with that feeling. One more day is enough. He is committed to living every day with intention, slowing down and taking in every moment, every sunset, every sound, every smell, every hug from his grandbabies, every minute with Nancy as if today is the day. Through every surgery and every life changing moment, Terry has remained intentional and at peace with the way he’s lived his life. “ I am still not afraid, I do not believe this life is all there is. I have a lot of hope regardless.”

If anything has helped Terry find his hope, he credits it to his relationship with God. “I am so grateful for what God has done in my life.” That gratitude pours out of him throughout our conversation when he talks about his children, his eyes light up when he talks about his grandchildren but when he talks about Nancy you can see so clearly that they are truly made for one another.” I didn’t know if I could ever meet someone like her.” In sickness and in health, in good times and bad, they have stood by each other, and held each other up for almost 40 years. Even spending their Valentine’s day together this year at Terry’s chemo appointment.

If there is anything that Terry hopes to leave you with, dear reader, is “ I want people to believe there is hope for every situation they’re in, personally or professionally. I believe that hope is the most powerful motivator that we have. If I can go in and inspire a group that may be struggling that’s the thing I want to do more than anything. To help people return to their motivation and find the strength to endure whatever is ahead of them, that’s what I hope to impart or inspire.”