Jessica Pegula revealed the medical situation in an essay in "The Players' Tribune" on Tuesday, adding that her mother continues to deal with significant memory issues and aphasia, which is a loss of ability to understand or express language.
"My mom is working hard in her recovery, she is improving, but where she ends up is still unknown," Jessica Pegula wrote.
Kim Pegula has been a barrier-breaking executive in the NHL since she and her husband, Terry, purchased the team in 2011. She has been the co-owner and president of the Buffalo Bills of the NFL since the Pegulas purchased them in 2014. But according to Jessica Pegula it is unknown whether she will be able to return to those positions, with the difficult demands they entail.
She is the first woman to serve as president in both the NHL and NFL at the same time.
"She was a shift in culture, positivity, and the heartbeat of many of the employees," Jessica Pegula wrote. "She gave everyone so much of her time and effort. She lived it and loved it, and it was felt by everyone she met. Now we come to the realization that all of that is most likely gone. That she won't be able to be that person anymore."
Pegula went into cardiac arrest while asleep at her home last June on the day of her 53rd birthday. Another daughter, Kelly, administered CPR until paramedics arrived and were able to restore Pegula's heartbeat before transporting her to the hospital. Jessica Pegula, who was at her home in Florida, first heard what had happened in a midnight call from her family.
Kim Pegula remained in the hospital for two weeks, moving out of the intensive care unit after a week, as the family began to understand the long-term implications of the cardiac event.
"Today, my mom is still in recovery and although it is the same answer every time someone asks me, it is true, she is improving every day," Jessica Pegula wrote. "She is dealing with significant expressive aphasia and significant memory issues. She can read, write and understand pretty well, but she has trouble finding the words to respond. It is hard to deal with and it takes a lot of patience to communicate with her, but I thank God every day that we can still communicate with her at all."
The essay came a month after Bills player Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Jan. 2. Jessica Pegula said the incident spurred her to share more of her mother's story after months of keeping her medical situation private.
Jessica Pegula wore a No. 3 patch at the Australian Open to honor Hamlin. She acknowledged that she felt like wearing it honored her mother, as well.
On June 28, the family released a statement saying that Kim Pegula was "progressing well" after it had said two weeks earlier that she had sustained "some unexpected health issues" earlier in the month.
