If you were to look at Keith Hetrick today, you’d see the average successful, professional young adult. What you wouldn’t see is the 22-year history of severe medical crises he has navigated since he was 14, beginning with terminal brain cancer.
You also wouldn’t see the endless hospital rooms, a childhood stolen by medical trauma or the moments when survival seemed impossible.
For more than 20 years, Hetrick kept the details of his medical journey mostly private. However, following health crises, such as a brain aneurysm and stroke, he had an epiphany when he realized his story was not meant for himself alone. Now, he has released a book, “He Lives: Finding Peace in Suffering,” Aug. 11.
“In facing near death, I began to understand and feel God’s presence and finally allowed him to ‘take the wheel,’ ” Hetrick said in an interview. “Through those experiences, I recognized God’s peace, and it was so peaceful, despite my world crumbling around me.”
Hetrick’s faith was built brick-by-brick across Northern Virginia. Educated at St. Timothy School in Chantilly, Holy Family Academy and Seton School in Manassas, he was an altar server at St. Clare of Assisi Church in Clifton and played CYO basketball for All Saints Catholic Church in Manassas. After graduating from the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, Hetrick brought those deep diocesan roots full circle. Today, while attending St. Charles Borromeo Church in Arlington, his work and witness continue to reach across the diocese, connecting deeply with communities like the Basilica of St. Mary in Alexandria, where he was the featured speaker for Theology on Tap this August. Hetrick, remembering his first diagnosis as a teen, recalls how much he depended on this community support.
“I may not have had the strongest faith at that time, but faith was all I had,” he said. “I was too weak and in so much pain to focus on anything else but trying to experience comfort, but the faith of others carried me through.”
Even though Hetrick knew he would have to share his story someday, the timing only became clear back in 2021 when sitting in a pew after a Saturday Mass. He asked God, “What do you want from me?”
“In that solitude and silence with God, post that question, he communicated with me in a way I can’t truly explain and had certainly never experienced before — that I needed to share my story,” he said. “With that, everything was very clear, and in an instant my whole life made sense. I was now ready. That is what ignited the fire to begin to share and write my story.”
Translating two decades of ongoing medical uncertainty and spiritual grace into a written manuscript required stepping away entirely from everyday routines. Hetrick felt called to travel to Medellín, Colombia, which he visited once, to write the book in solitude.
“What was necessary for my book was to get away from the comforts and obligations of home, the things that kept me busy,” he said. “I did not speak Spanish, which provided an even greater loneliness … at least to begin. In retrospect, it allowed the book to become something entirely different than what I had initially imagined. God has his ways, and he encounters us how and when we need him, if we say ‘yes.’ “
Removed from the comforts of home and faced with a language barrier, the process of writing itself turned into a period of discernment. An initial act of obedience turned into a practical spiritual guide for those who carry cross-bearing burdens.
Central to the story of “He Lives” is a subtle questioning of the way Catholics view suffering. Having lived through years of struggle with brain cancer and its uncertainty, Hetrick said he prayed for many years just for the suffering to stop and things to go back to normal — but normal never came back. Peace didn’t come until he changed his approach from that of controlling to one of trusting fully.
“(God) has gotten me this far; I would be a fool not to trust him,” he said. “The roadmap to encounter peace is simple. Peace does not begin when suffering ends. Peace begins when we entrust our lives to Christ, regardless of circumstance.”
Rather than allowing health issues to shape his inner self, he sees daily surrender as a vital spiritual discipline.
“Focusing on the past, living with regret, seeking sympathy or conversely worrying about the future are things that are not coming from God — full stop,” Hetrick said. He compared his experience to finding a shortcut in a video game. “The encounter of peace is like life’s cheat code. When I am not at peace about something, it’s easy to recognize that something needs to change … We all have to suffer in this world. It’s very simple. Do you want to do it alone, or do you want to do it with God?”
While “He Lives” shares Hetrick’s experience of surviving brain cancer, it was not written to be a mere memoir or a recount of medical history. On the contrary, the book acts as a resource for anyone going through difficult times, whether it is a terrible diagnosis or quiet emotional burdens.
Hetrick navigates going from “Why me?” or praying strictly for suffering to end, to discovering peace in the middle of the storm. For anyone feeling overwhelmed by uncertainty, “He Lives” offers proof that peace is not a lack of problems; it’s the presence of Christ.
The book highlights the power of intercessory prayer and community and offers comfort to people watching a loved one carry a heavy cross.
His book’s release represents a personal milestone and a new beginning. The publishing date, Aug. 11, 2026, is Keith’s 37th birthday, a testament to survival.
“There is no earthly explanation of how or why I’m still here. To the outsider looking in, I am completely normal … someone cannot tell that I have been through so much,” Hetrick said. “With this book, which is coming from the directive from God to share my story, I am excited to see the legs that he gives it. It’s his story.”
Batista can be reached at ana.batista@catholicherald.com.com.
Get the book
To order a copy of “He Lives: Finding Peace in Suffering,” go to keithhetrick.co.
