Friends of Norman Shumway

Today is my 42nd birthday. Because of Dr. Shumway I am here today celebrating it. If my parents had not been living in Palo Alto, CA and had the good fortune of meeting Dr. Shumway, I would not have been born on May 2, 1964, and would not be alive today writing this. I owe all I have to him. His kind, generous and humble nature along with his innovative thinking made him a truly unique individual and I was honored and thrilled to have had the pleasure of meeting him "again" nine years ago as an adult when I had a consultation appointment with him. He will always be in my heart and a part of my life.

I met Norm through the Stanford Golf Club. We played together in several Sunday mixers and exchanged invitationals with a couple at Los Altos CC. He was a delightful golfing companion--had a great perspective on the game and didn't take it too seriously. I'll miss his smile and sense of humor especially. When I think of his career it occurs to me that there are those who are risk takers and those who want a sure thing. Norm was one of those rare people who could take a risk and turn it into a sure thing.

Jean Rice
(he called me Kiddo)

My association with Dr. Shumway was through his daughter, Sarah Shumway, who was an undergraduate at Stanford while I was a law student there. Our times together were memorable and fun. (When I had to go to Stanford Hospital during those years, it was suggested that I be volunteered as a donor while I was asleep.) Many thoughts and prayers for the family!

I only worked in the Department of Cardiothoracic surgery for a short time and getting to know him was easy. He would say hi all the time and, even though I did not know him personally, I felt that his presence in the office was that of a person with an overwhelming heart who cared very much about what he has instilled in all who have come after him. I would see him with one of the cardiothoracic MDs in the office as if they were remembering things as young boys. That is the feeling that I would get from his relationship with Dr. Mark; they were always together laughing and talking. Dr. Shumway will be missed.

I am hearbroken that I will never see that shock of white hair and that smiling face walking the halls of Stanford. I worked in General Surgery with Dr. Oberhelman for 30 years and Dr. Shumway would come downstairs when we were in the "Bowel
of the Hospital" (S067). I knew they were talking about golf scores and not about patients(SMILE). Dr. Shumway would come out of Dr. O's Office beaming: I guess "He won". I heard a wonderful saying and I think it fits perfectly. Though he's gone physically he's "In Our Hearts Forever" AND THAT HE IS......

I had a very sick heart in March 1979 and thought I only had about a week to live. I was concerned that my wife would have to carry on raising our 5 children ages to 8 to 14, then the call from Stanford finally came for my first heart transplant. I recall seeing my 12-year-old daughter reacting �yeah!� as if her team just scored a touchdown. Nearly 26 years later the heart turned out to be not so perfect after all resulting in another transplant in January last year.

Thanks Dr. Shumway for pioneering this procedure. Otherwise, my family�'s fate would have turned a different unknown path without the bonus almost 27 years of my life.
I treasure the times when we occasionally said hello to each other during my clinic visits and at reunions and Christmas parties. My family will always remember you as our hero.

I had the privilege of producing the video tribute to Dr. Shumway in 1993 which is posted on this website. I spent hours in interviewing sessions with him and dozens of former colleagues and students around the country. Each person praised Norm in his own way for his groundbreaking scientific and clinical work, his talent for teaching and for his unique sense of humor and personality. The project for me was one of the most rewarding experiences I have had in my career. I will miss Dr. Shumway greatly.

Mary Lou Allen

I was fortunate to know Dr. Shumway for almost 40 years and had the privilege of working FOR him for 20 of those years – he would say I worked WITH him and would refer to me as his colleague – whoa!!! That was the type of person he was. What incredibly fabulous memories I will take to MY grave. Dr. Shumway had that rare talent of making you feel so special and important to the program. There were no airs about him – what you saw was what you got. For one so brilliant and accomplished he was extraordinarily humble. He treated everyone as his equal – he attended our department janitor’s graduation ceremony just because he was invited He was such a people person and oh what an outrageous and sometimes non-repeatable sense of humor and wit……….. He could spout totally spontaneous and appropriate jokes and lyrics at the drop of a hat.

I will never ever forget my very special friend and I am better off for having known him. Today I will be brave by not mourning him, but celebrating his incredible life which is the way I know he would want it. I will miss him forever.

Adena Goodart

I already miss Dr. Shumway or as a couple of us called him-"Shummie" I worked with him in CT Surgery for 6 years. Every day he serenaded me with a song and always called me Miss America (which noone had ever called me except for my Grampa who had passed away). He taught me the art of a good comeback and we always made sure there was loud laughter in the Falk Bldng. He will always be in my heart and Shummie~"my light is always on for you~remember it is the red light"

Dr. Shumway hired me as a laboratory assistant when I was a very young high school student, in 1963-64. I found his laboratory when I was exploring Stanford research laboratories after school on my bicycle. I found open doors off a long corridor & stood there looking in at a circle of surgeons doing surgery, an experimental heart transplant. 20 min or so later one of them (Dr. Shumway) turns, looks at me & says, "Hey kid, close the door with you on one side of it." So I walked in & closed the door. They let me watch, then help clean up, then prepare the instruments for autoclaving & then run the heart-lung machine, do anaesthesia & do the surgical procedures -vasucular anastomoses- in the dogs. My surgery was as successful as theirs. This was an amazing experience for a young high school student to have. Dr. Shumway's operating room humor was a truly formative experience & one I hope other youngsters have the opportunity of being with such a master.

He help inspire a life of excitement & exploration in medicine & science while showing others what is possible through intellectual learning & exciting discovery.

I work in a surgery-related field, Structural Integration (invented by Dr. Ida P. Rolf), where the non-invasive manipulators do not need anaesthetic & astounding transformations in scar tissues & the relationship & alignment among body segments
are readily attainable through simple manual manipulations. I would have not recognized this work as significant if I had not had Dr. Shumway's friendship and support as a high school student.

Norman, I finally found out how to clean up surgeon's tracks! I dearly wish I had been able to tell you this in person.

Richard Wheeler
10 Feb, 2006

He is a hero to many, in and out of the field of cardiothoracic surgery. His spirit and legend will live on. jb shinn, m.d.

I had the great pleasure of working in the department of cardiothoracic surgery starting in 1989. Although I worked in the resesarch labs, Dr. Shumway always made a point to say hello, and perhaps share a joke with me. His wit and smile will be missed.