THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 14, 1994 TAG: 9408120245
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 05 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Rebecca Myers
LENGTH: Long : 110 lines
At 35, Bob Shaffer had his first heart attack. His second struck five years later. At 44, Shaffer's heart was operating at 18 percent efficiency.
``That's when I was taken up to MCV (Medical College of Virginia) and evaluated for a heart transplant,'' said Shaffer, a Cradock resident.
Six years have passed since Shaffer, now 50, received his new heart.
Last weekend, he participated in the U.S. Transplant Games in Atlanta, an Olympic-style event held every two years for recipients of kidney, liver, heart, lung, pancreas and bone marrow transplants.
Shaffer brought home a gold medal in 3-on-3 basketball - as did five teammates, four of whom had had kidney transplants and one of whom had had a liver transplant.
``We were undefeated. The roughest game we had was against Louisiana. They had a guy who was about 6-8 or 6-9. Max Sammons (of Norfolk) was our big player, and (the Louisianan) liked to beat poor Max to death. He body-slammed him about four times. It was kind of strange because they'd come over and told us before the game that Louisiana had been getting beat around and for us to take it easy on them. I thought that was kind of weird,'' Shaffer said with a laugh.
About 1,200 transplant recipients from across the country competed in badminton, track and field, 3-on-3 basketball, swimming, bicycling, table tennis, bowling, tennis, golf, racquetball and volleyball. Of the 33 participants from Virginia, 13 won a total of 25 medals.
Shaffer will go on to play in the World Transplant Games next August in Manchester, England. He already has participated in two other World Games. His first was in 1991 in Budapest, Hungary, and his second was last year in Vancouver, Canada, where he won a silver medal in golf.
``I've met a lot of friends all over the world. I've got friends in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, England, Ireland. It's just amazing, the camaraderie. It's hard for somebody who hasn't had a transplant to understand. Even though it's different types of transplants, you've all got something in common. It's just amazing the friendships you strike up.
``My girlfriend, she was just amazed when we checked in,'' he said. ``There were already messages waiting on me. She couldn't believe it. She said, `Is there anybody here you don't know?' ''
An employee of Bell Atlantic, where he's worked for 25 years, Shaffer works on electronic switching systems and computers. Though his job demands ``all kinds of weird and crazy hours,'' Shaffer enjoys golfing, bowling and playing basketball in his spare time.
At 6 feet tall and 176 pounds, Shaffer is in tip-top shape. His doctors have placed no restrictions on him.
``The only limitation is just what I put on myself. And that's basically when I get tired, I just sit down and rest a little bit, that's all. That's what everybody ought to do, really,'' he said.
Though he knows little about his donor except that she was young, Shaffer thinks often about the sacrifice made by the woman's family.
``If it wasn't for them thinking of somebody else when they were having a really tough time, I wouldn't even be here,'' he said. ``I wouldn't even be here.''
A little more than a year after Shaffer had his transplant, his father died of a heart attack at age 75.
``And there was no question in any of my family members' minds that we were going to donate what we could.
``All I can do is donate my eyes and give my body for medical research, and I have no problem doing that either,'' he said.
Name: Robert W. Shaffer
Nickname: Bob
Neighborhood: Cradock
Number of years in Portsmouth: 35
Birthplace: Portsmouth
Birthdate: Sept. 14, 1943
Occupation: Central Office Technician, Bell Atlantic Virginia
What other job than your own would you like? Airplane pilot - I love to fly.
Marital status: Divorced
Children: Bobby, 21; and Josh, 5
Fondest childhood memory: The dances at the VFW Hall in Cradock and all the people that used to go there.
First concert: Blood, Sweat & Tears in Virginia Beach in 1968
What song title best describes your life? ``Power of Love,'' by Celine Dion
If you won the lottery, what's the very first thing you'd buy? I'd buy my girlfriend anything she wants.
If you could trade places for just one day with anyone in the world, who would it be and why? I wouldn't trade with anyone. It can't get any better than what I've got. Besides, if it did, it would only be for one day.
Biggest accomplishment: After talking to a young woman who didn't think she wanted a heart transplant and seeing the relief on her face after she found out that she could have sex, she told the coordinator, ``Let's go for it.''
Most embarrassing moment: While doing a TV interview with Sherry Brennan, she asked what heart problem sent me to the hospital, and I couldn't remember ``congestive heart failure.''
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? My temper
Perfect way to spend the day: Being with Judy and doing most anything with her.
I can't resist: Judy
Favorite Portsmouth restaurant: Scale O'De Whale
Favorite Portsmouth hangout: Portside
Biggest problem facing Portsmouth: Revenue base
If you had three wishes for Portsmouth, what would they be?
Fix the streets.
Hire back the people who were laid off.
A city government that looked after those who elected them. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MARK MITCHELL
KEYWORDS: PROFILE INTERVIEW
by CNB