Shamekka Marty
From becoming a teenage mother at 17 to emerging as a nationally recognized health advocate, healthcare strategist, sports and wellness executive, and transplant survivor, Shamekka Marty’s story is one of resilience, reinvention, leadership, and purpose.
Born with an unshakable determination to create a different future for herself and her children, Shamekka became pregnant at just 16 years old and gave birth to her first child at 17. While many viewed teen motherhood as a limitation, she saw it as motivation. She continued pushing forward through adversity, balancing motherhood, education, work, and eventually building a career rooted in advocacy, leadership, and impact. She welcomed her second child at 20 and later her third at 27, all while navigating extraordinary personal and medical challenges behind the scenes.
Shamekka’s life has been profoundly shaped by chronic illness, medical adversity, caregiving, and survival. Living with multiple complex and often debilitating health conditions, she has spent much of her life navigating the realities of invisible illness while continuing to lead, build, advocate, and raise a family. Her medical journey includes systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), lupus nephritis, Sjögren’s syndrome, endometriosis, chronic autoimmune complications, and kidney disease that ultimately led to kidney failure and a life-saving kidney transplant.
Over the years, she has endured countless hospitalizations, invasive procedures, chronic pain, severe fatigue, immune system complications, and the emotional toll that comes with long-term illness. She has also survived a stroke, undergone a hysterectomy, and faced numerous complex health battles that dramatically altered the course of her life physically, emotionally, and mentally. Despite these challenges, she continued showing up not only for herself, but for her children, her family, and her community.
Her connection to transplantation and healthcare advocacy extends far beyond her own story. Shamekka has also served as a caregiver to multiple loved ones navigating organ transplantation and end-stage renal disease, including family members who later passed away. Witnessing both sides of the healthcare system — as both patient and caregiver — gave her a rare and deeply personal understanding of the gaps within healthcare, the importance of advocacy, and the emotional realities families face during medical crises.
Rather than allowing her diagnoses to define or limit her, Shamekka transformed her pain into purpose. Her journey through lupus, transplant, autoimmune disease, stroke recovery, women’s health challenges, and chronic illness became the driving force behind her advocacy work and commitment to ensuring that patients, especially those with invisible illnesses, feel seen, heard, and represented.
Today, Shamekka is recognized as a powerful voice in patient advocacy, health equity, chronic illness awareness, women’s health, transplantation, and healthcare innovation. She has become known for speaking openly about the unseen realities of living with invisible illness while continuing to lead, build, and create impact at the highest levels.
Professionally, Shamekka has built an impressive career spanning healthcare, technology, cybersecurity, project management, and strategic partnerships. With a background in IT and program leadership, she has worked with major organizations including Airbnb, JPMorgan Chase, Facebook, PG&E, Robert Half, and Fisher Investments. She also earned her PMP and Certified ScrumMaster credentials, further establishing herself as a respected leader in operations, project execution, and organizational strategy.
At the intersection of sports, healthcare, and advocacy, Shamekka is the Founder & CEO of Beyond the Game Health, a company dedicated to bridging sports and health through education-driven events, athlete storytelling, community engagement, and wellness activations. Through Beyond the Game Health, she has worked alongside professional athletes, healthcare organizations, pharmaceutical companies, leagues, and nonprofits to create meaningful conversations around health equity, prevention, mental health, chronic illness, transplantation, women’s health, and community wellness.
Her work has led to collaborations and engagements connected to the NFL Alumni Association, the National Basketball Retired Players Association, pharmaceutical companies, healthcare leaders, and advocacy organizations nationwide. She also serves as the official event contractor for NFL Alumni NorCal through Beyond the Game Health.
Beyond business, Shamekka has become known for her authentic storytelling and ability to connect deeply with patients, caregivers, athletes, executives, and communities alike. She has spoken to the FDA, collaborated with pharmaceutical leaders, participated in national healthcare panels, and advocated for greater inclusion of patient voices in healthcare innovation and policy decisions. She believes strongly that patients should not simply be part of the conversation — they should help lead it.
Her leadership and advocacy have earned her recognition as a 2026 BLOC 100 Vanguard Honoree, celebrating leaders helping shape the future of healthcare and life sciences through innovation and impact.
Despite the titles and accomplishments, Shamekka remains grounded in the roles that matter most to her: mother, advocate, survivor, caregiver, and voice for those who often feel unseen. Her journey reflects the reality that strength does not always look perfect or polished — sometimes it looks like showing up through pain, rebuilding after setbacks, advocating through exhaustion, and continuing to lead while carrying invisible battles no one else can see.
Whether she is moderating panels, producing large-scale sports and wellness activations, supporting transplant and lupus communities, mentoring others, or speaking about health equity and resilience, Shamekka Marty continues to use every chapter of her story to create purpose, possibility, and impact for others.
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