Heart4Terry

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A nonprofit fundraiser supporting

National Foundation for Transplants, Inc.
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Terry received a heart transplant in April 2022. Help us raise $ for annual out-of-pocket expenses.

$106,199

raised by 522 people

$120,000 goal

A Grateful Heart

Update posted 1 year ago

It’s now a year since I received my new heart. It’s been difficult dealing with mild rejection and an arrhythmia that has developed, but we are hopeful that my doctors will be able to successfully treat. That said, I am forever grateful to my anonymous donor, my transplant team, my family, friends, and firefighters who supported me on this journey. Without all of you, I don’t know if I would have made it through this. I now enjoy doing some jobs around the house, going to the fire station and helping out where I can, but the greatest blessing of this second chance for life is spending time with my five grandchildren.

God is good and He has certainly blessed me!

Terry

Terry Shaffer

Transplant Type:   Heart

My husband, Terry Shaffer, has always had a big heart - both physically and in the generous and compassionate way he lives his life.  He was born with a congenital heart problem that led to cardiomyopathy - an enlarged heart.   In the years between diagnosis and the crippling heart disease he now has, Terry demonstrated just how big his heart for others is by leading our church’s youth program, coaching youth softball and ice hockey teams, playing Santa Claus in our community, and serving as chief of the Shanksville Volunteer Fire Department for 25 years.  

While fire chief, Terry recruited and mentored new firefighters, led the department through construction and two additions to their fire station, critical truck and equipmentChief Shaffer, Photo by Cohn upgrades, and the initiation of both a Quick Response Emergency Medical Unit and a Water and Ice Rescue Dive Team.  He, himself, responded to hundreds of fire and emergency calls in our area, as well as on the Pennsylvania Turnpike.  He met, perhaps, the second biggest challenge of his life when he and his company responded to the crash of hijacked United Airlines Flight 93 just outside Shanksville on September 11, 2001.  Terry, with others in the company, assisted in evidence recovery at the scene, then took on the role of department public information officer for Flight 93 for the next 20 years.  He served on the Flight 93 Memorial Task Force, helping to guide creation of a national memorial to honor the passengers and crew of Flight 93, and when Flight 93 National Memorial was built, he proudly volunteered there for as long as his health allowed.    

Terry with grandkidsAnd all the while, Terry was a devoted husband, father of three, and a grandfather, and was a dedicated employee of Pepsi-Cola for 45 years, until disability ended his career prematurely.  Though only in his 50s, Terry’s big heart developed chronic atrial fibrillation and his mitral valve was repaired.  45 years at Pepsi-Cola
More recently, he developed congestive heart failure (CHF), an aneurysm at the apex of his heart, endocarditis, and pulmonary hypertension. In 2019, his cardiology team gave us the sobering news that a heart transplant is the only option to extend his life.   

Terry’s journey to transplant began with weight loss and medical management of his CHF until he attained a BMI and acceptable pulmonary pressures to receive a heart transplant.  He was listed for transplant at UPMC Presbyterian in Pittsburgh in November 2021.  He continues to struggle daily with CHF symptoms while he awaits “the call”.   

Terry is 66 years old and now faces the biggest challenge of his life. There is no aspect of daily living that has not been impacted by his severe heart disease, but that big heart that cares for others still beats strong.  

The average heart transplant costs more than $1 million. Health insurance will cover only a portion of the transplant costs.  For the rest of his life, Terry will need follow-up care and daily anti-rejection medications. Post-transplant medications are very expensive and they are as critical to his survival as the transplant itself. If you are able to make a financial contribution for Terry’s transplant-related expenses that are not covered by health insurance, we thank you.   

Your support and prayers for a successful transplant mean everything to Terry and our family.  

Gratefully,

Kathie Shaffer


You can help by making a tax-deductible donation to the National Foundation for Transplants in honor of Terry.  

If you'd prefer to send your gift by mail, please send it to the National Foundation for Transplants, 3249 W. Sarazen’s Circle, Suite 100, Memphis, TN 38125.  

Please be sure to write "in honor of Terry Shaffer” in the memo line. 

Please ask your employer if they participate in a matching gift program!

If you have any questions about The National Foundation for Transplants, feel free to contact the staff at 800-489-3863.

This fundraiser supports

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National Foundation for Transplants, Inc.

Organized By Heart4Terry -Family & Friends of Terry Shaffer

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