THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, September 1, 1994 TAG: 9408310154
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SHIRLEY BRINKLEY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 83 lines
ALTHOUGH HIS BASKETBALL team representing Hampton Roads did not capture the gold medal at the National Kidney Foundation U.S. Transplant Games, Rufus Lassiter considers himself a winner.
Celebrating with the Virginia team that did take home the gold, Lassiter, 46, reveled in the fact that he was able to participate.
Four years ago, Lassiter suffered from renal failure and was on dialysis for 14 months, awaiting a kidney transplant.
``I was very lucky. I have B negative blood, which is relatively rare. . . has provided a second chance at life for me through an organ donor. Now I have to do my part.''
Feeling physically fit, Lassiter submitted an application and was accepted to participate in the games, Aug. 4-7 at Emory University in Atlanta.
USAir was a sponsor, and a transplant support group raised funds for the trip by selling T-shirts throughout Hampton Roads.
``I had played sports all my life,'' Lassiter said. ``I signed up for table tennis, basketball and tennis, but I found out after the first night that these old legs aren't as young as I thought.''
He decided not to compete in tennis or table tennis, but to concentrate on improving his skills in basketball. The three-man team played at a slower pace and was not required to chase the ball up and down the court.
``I just enjoyed being there. There were two teams from Virginia, and since the other team won the gold, my team got a little recognition and a picture taken with them.''
A Suffolk native, Lassiter played varsity football and graduated from John F. Kennedy High School in 1968. He received an associate's degree in welding technology at Paul D. Camp Community College in 1970.
After graduation, he joined the Army and was sent to quartermaster school at Fort Lee for on-the-job training to become a stock-control and accounting specialist.
During a tour in Vietnam, Lassiter said, he encountered Agent Orange, an herbicide .
``When I was on perimeter guard duty, they would spray the area to kill vegetation so we could have better visibility,'' he said. ``We never thought it would be harmful, but it did get on our skin.
Shortly after his return to civilian life, Lassiter was diagnosed with hypertension and was found to be suffering from glumura nephrosis, a disease that causes deterioration of the kidneys.
``The doctor said that Agent Orange could have been a factor. The disease plagued me for 20 years.''
While working in his yard one morning, Lassiter said his legs and feet began to swell, and he felt ill. The next day, he went to work with his boots unlaced.
Later, he entered DePaul Hospital in Norfolk, where he was told both kidneys had stopped functioning. Dialysis was the only solution pending a transplant.
March 11, 1991, Lassiter received a healthy kidney during a 12-hour operation at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. A special program at the hospital made three required drugs available to Lassiter, which would have cost him about $2,500 monthly.
``I feel great, but I know I'll have to take medication for the rest of my life. I know you can be productive, but the only part that worries me is you've either got to be filthy rich or a poor person to receive your medication. Right now, I'm trying to get rich so that I can afford the drugs.''
Last April, Lassiter opened a seafood market, Shore Catch, on White Marsh Road.
Divorced, he has two children, Loukisha Lassiter, 21, and Jonathan Lassiter, 10.
Lassiter has frequent medical evaluations and attends monthly meetings of a transplant support group. And he continues to live a full and active life.
``I walk, jog, bowl, and hit tennis balls across the net. I just hope my kidney keeps working for the next 40 or 50 years.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by JOHN B. SHEALLY II
Rufus Lassiter, who had a kidney transplant, submitted an
application and was accepted to participate in the National Kidney
Foundation U.S. Transplant Games, Aug. 4-7 at Emory University in
Atlanta.
by CNB