Curt Everhart’s Spirt Was Christened at Birth
What’s In a Name?
Does the name make the man, or does the man give meaning to the name?
Meet Curt Everhart—a name that quite literally means “brave as a boar.” Rooted in Germanic tradition, the surname suggests courage, strength, and an indomitable spirit. And from an early age, Curt embodied that fierce tenacity.
As a young man, Curt was not content to sit still. With a natural drive to compete, solve problems, and carve his path, he gravitated toward sports and eventually into the corporate world. “I was curious and stubborn and perhaps a bit arrogant,” he says, reflecting on his youth. “But I loved to figure things out. I had a knack for solving problems—and when you add tenacity to that, it became my identity.”
Curt’s identity crystallized further when he joined PepsiCo in his 20s during a pivotal time in the cola wars. The company was rallying to overtake Coca-Cola, and they were looking for the best. With a recruitment effort that rivaled the Marines’ “looking for a few good men,” Curt fit the mold—smart, confident, and relentless.
I had the good fortune of working with Curt during that period. There was a spirit of success and mission in the air. Pepsi sourced the best people from a national pool of candidates. With a goal of leading the industry and a dedicated visionary leadership, one really begins to believe you can accomplish anything.
But success, especially early on, often can cast a powerful illusion.
“In those days,” Curt recalls, “I felt invincible. Career momentum was strong, life was fast-paced, and everything seemed to be going up. It’s easy to believe the ride will never end.”
It did.
Life’s Roller Coaster
Curt’s personal life began to mirror the complexity of his and fast-moving career. His growing family would ultimately yield three children but it was the birth of his second daughter, Faith that would change the trajectory of his life.
Life has a way of changing our plans.
Faith fell critically ill. So ill that she was given last rights. But Faith fought back and spent weeks in ICU, followed by months in the hospital. Her illness would ultimately result in 14 brain surgeries over 30 years, and constant medical attention. Despite her battles, today Faith is full of life, joy, and appreciation.
Curt explained, “All the mental costs and intense worry have been a heavy load. At many points we came so close to losing her. It also took a great toll on my other 2 children, Kyle and Kristen.”
The statistics for couples navigating a child’s serious illness are sobering—divorce rates can skyrocket under such stress. Estimates are that 80% + of these marriages don’t last. Curt’s story was similar. His daughter recovered. The marriage did not.
After his first marriage failure, Curt faced a brutal truth: failure is not just an event. It’s an invitation. An invitation to examine, to reflect, and to grow. He didn’t shy away. “I had to do some serious work on myself,” he admits. “Not just to move forward—but to evolve.”
And fortunately, Curt found a partner that he could share both his soul and strengthen him throughout this medical journey. Curt and Melanie were married in 1995 and added daughter Sophia to the new family.
Years of numerous medical developments and milestones have been shared in lockstep with his wife. Melanie and Curt came together with a shared vision to develop a marriage centered on the deepest personal relationship and on their mutual faith in God. Together, in partnership, they worked on their faith and their family.
“We dived deeply into our walk,” Curt explained. “We knew that our strength will come from growing in this important area. Step by step, Melanie and I searched out all sources for spiritual growth including, books, classes, online courses, teachers, and regular church attendance.”
Curt and Melanie credit Fresh Start International and their founder, Steve Peterson who became a friend and mentor. “Fresh Start really did help us launch a new attitude towards life and living,” he said. We began to feel that life was finally beginning to turn around for us.”
Life can be a brutal teacher. Every situation can become a teachable moment if we are willing and open to becoming a student.
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.”
Winston Churchill
New Beginnings and New Lessons
Curt was ready for a new beginning. With a new marriage full of promise and a renewed focus, Curt began to prioritize faith, family, and purpose. “I realized that my relationship with Melanie guided with our creator had to be unequivocally the center of my life,” he explains. “Faith didn’t eliminate hardship. It simply helped me walk through it with purpose and greater strength.”
That strength would soon be tested again.
“I’ve always had the entrepreneurial spirit,” he shared. “During this new chapter of my life, I thought this was the time to start a new business and leave corporate America.
Curt entered a new business venture full of promise with people he felt he could trust, only to watch it unravel through questionable decisions, legal battles, and at times devastating lost trust.
“We lost everything,” he explained. “As a husband, father, and professional, I was at one of the lowest points of my life. However, I never chose to be a victim and leaned on my faith.”
Another dream shattered. Another hard-earned lesson: “Trust,” he says, “has to be earned, and important lessons were learned from an experience like this.”
Fearless Faith
By 2021, Curt had weathered storms in marriage, business, and personal identity. But nothing could have fully prepared him for the diagnosis that came next.
Cancer. Not just any diagnosis. But aggressive, late stage cancer with a diagnosis of less than 1% survival rate.
Seemingly overnight, Curt transitioned from a healthy, athletic man to a critically ill patient battling for his life. Curt couldn’t stand on his own for nearly 10 months.
The journey was harrowing. Ten days in ICU. Seven months completely disabled in bed, 7 blood transfusions, 2 years of immunotherapy, and 3 radiations. Endless tests and agonizing uncertainty.
And yet, Curt chose a deep inner voice guided by his creator. And this aligned with the very essence his name invoked from his beginning. Curt never accepted that he was a victim. He instead chose to think like a victor. His driving philosophy was, “Myself plus God is always a majority.”
“I may never feel the prior ‘normal’ again,” he says. “However, I fully accept this new normal. I will probably need to have PET scans every 3 months for the rest of my life. I’m thankful because today, my scans show my cancer has rescinded from nearly everywhere in my body to a couple of small nodules on my hip and midsection. The good news is they are medically defined as stable. Major life changes, including metabolic fasting has helped me tremendously.”
Curt summed it up saying this, “we all have to live with something and we never know when our time will come. I’m climbing new mountains every day and have even started playing golf again. I’m almost driving the ball as far I did in my prime. I’m very focused on the future and returning to those activities I truly love…and some new ones.”
Return on Investment
We can look at our adversities as a payment – a cost we incur to reform and rebuild ourselves.
Consequently, that payment, like any good investment should generate a return. For Curt, each of these struggles helps to mold him into something new, each revelation in his journey to navigate impossibilities to be present, learn from every experience, and never give up on becoming all that he can be.
Curt doesn’t sugarcoat the struggle. Instead he chooses gratitude. “People ask me how I stay thankful after all this,” he says. “Each hardship didn’t weaken me—it prepared me. Every loss taught me to fight smarter, live deeper, and love better.”
From my first failed marriage, I dedicated myself to be truly loving Melanie, and I abandoned the giving-to-get premise. From my business failure, I’ve learned how to better understand people with clear-eyed insights and their intentions. From my cancer, I learned to be present and more fully enjoy the here and the now moments, and most of all trusting God while knowing that He loves me.”
He continued with a big smile, “I’ve also learned to involve my wife in everything and listen more attentively to her insights.”
These aren’t just reflections, they are transformational revelations. Proof that hardship, while painful, is often the catalyst for our deepest growth.
His journey, forged through difficulty, reveals a powerful truth: resilience isn’t something we’re born with. It’s something we earn, one hardship at a time. Curt continued, “never ignore the whisper when the whole picture isn’t clear, and trust in your pursuits to align with your creator. He has a good plan for each one of us and no one will escape trials and tribulations. He reminds us to stay focused, even when you are indescribably weary, to get to the other side to witness your vision.”
Curt didn’t just survive—he transformed. “Life prepared me for this battle,” he reflects. “Every painful chapter taught me something vital.”
Adversity is not the enemy of a meaningful life. In fact, it might be its greatest teacher. When we face hardship early on, we gain more than just survival skills—we gain the courage, clarity, and strength to endure and rise again. And it reminds us all: the hardest roads often lead to the strongest souls.