Before his heart transplant, Louis Smith was prepared for death. In Saudi Arabia right after the Gulf War, the 66-year-old veteran helped lead a missile platoon that guarded aircraft. He served his country for more than two decades in the Middle East, South Korea and Europe. "I wasn't afraid to die. I was a soldier," said Smith, a Chicagoland native who, at the age of 17, followed in his father's footsteps and joined the U.S. Army . However, Smith was concerned about what life would be like if