[Originally published on SDSU NewsCenter]
Randy Shaw and his father Gaylord took two diametrically opposed career paths.
Gaylord went to college and became a nationally acclaimed journalist. Among his many stops in the media industry, he worked for the Associated Press as a White House correspondent during Richard’s Nixon administration, and in 1978, Gaylord won the Pulitzer Prize for national reporting.
Randy, on the other hand, enlisted in the Marines Corp when he was 17 years old, one year after his father earned the most renowned journalism award.
“As much as I complained about it and hated it while I was in, I wouldn’t change anything about it,” Randy said. “You want to the best, you want to be a Marine.”
Following his four-year stint in the service, Randy became an automobile mechanic, and in 1996, he joined Chuck Vistercil operating SDSU’s preventative maintenance program.
“I do what I love and I love what I do,” Randy said.
Despite the dichotomy between Randy’s career choice and that of his father — “Night and day,” Randy described it — both Shaw men embody the same type of work ethic.
“Anything you put your mind to, if you want it bad enough, you can do it,” Randy said, describing the workmanship he learned from his father.
Facts and figures
With almost 300 pickup trucks, SDSU police cars and golf carts, and another 500 pieces of grounds equipment — including lawnmowers, edgers, blowers and weed-whackers — SDSU has one of the largest vehicle fleets in the CSU system.
Vistercil and Shaw, who together have more than 65 years of experience in the automobile servicing industry, inspect approximately 480 vehicles, replace 150 tires and conduct 90 emissions/smog tests each year.
To effectively maintain the fleet, the two mechanics use 2,600 quarts of oil and 69,000 gallons of gas annually. Additionally, they handle service calls for department vehicles — typically 10 per week — and fix dead batteries and flat tires across campus.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
A Season of Healing
[Originally published on SDSU NewsCenter]
Al Schaffer first spotted Lillian Charn in the eighth grade. He sat in a study hall when the blond-haired cheerleader walked into the room.
Al Schaffer first spotted Lillian Charn in the eighth grade. He sat in a study hall when the blond-haired cheerleader walked into the room.
Al Schaffer and his wife Lillian
“My eyes must have bugged out,” Schaffer recalled as he reached for his wallet to pull out a picture of Lillian.
Six years later, in 1954, they were married and started a family.
“I had a tremendous marriage, a wonderful lifemate and three terrific kids,” Schaffer said.
In 2007, Lillian was diagnosed with amyloidosis, a disease in which abnormal proteins build up in various organs.
“It was the saddest day of my life because there’s no cure,” Schaffer said.
After battling the disease for nearly three years, Lillian passed away last May, just two months before their 56-year anniversary. At her memorial in Michigan, SDSU men’s basketball assistant coach Brian Dutcher dished out an assist to his longtime friend.
“Don’t worry about your dad,” Dutcher told Schaffer’s two sons. “We’re going to keep him busy.”
From part-time to full-time
Schaffer began attending SDSU men’s basketball games after moving to San Diego in 1987, the first of his 14 years at Ramona High School, where he coached boys' varsity basketball. When Steve Fisher and his coaching staff — Dutcher included — took over the Aztec program in 1999, Schaffer became more than an aficionado.
“After going to (the games) for awhile, Coach Dutcher — when he would see me — he would always say, ‘What’d you notice?’” recalled Schaffer, who retired from Ramona in 2001. “So eventually I just started taking some notes.”
When Schaffer returned to San Diego following his wife's memorial, Dutcher offered his friend an opportunity to become more involved with the team. Schaffer wholeheartedly accepted the offer.
“I come in almost everyday … and I take notes on every practice,” he said. “And then I share what I notice.
“Some people say you’re a volunteer coach,” Schaffer added. “I’m more of a volunteer observer.”
Schaffer also takes notes at SDSU home games from his complimentary seat in the Viejas Arena stands. Per NCAA rules, the SDSU Athletic Department is not permitted to pay for him to travel with the team, so Schaffer took it upon himself to attend 13 of the Aztecs’ 19 road games this season.
“It’s given Al a great outlet to come and spend time with us,” Dutcher said.
“To not use him as a resource would be foolish.”
Rich in his relationships
Schaffer began attending SDSU men’s basketball games after moving to San Diego in 1987, the first of his 14 years at Ramona High School, where he coached boys' varsity basketball. When Steve Fisher and his coaching staff — Dutcher included — took over the Aztec program in 1999, Schaffer became more than an aficionado.
“After going to (the games) for awhile, Coach Dutcher — when he would see me — he would always say, ‘What’d you notice?’” recalled Schaffer, who retired from Ramona in 2001. “So eventually I just started taking some notes.”
When Schaffer returned to San Diego following his wife's memorial, Dutcher offered his friend an opportunity to become more involved with the team. Schaffer wholeheartedly accepted the offer.
“I come in almost everyday … and I take notes on every practice,” he said. “And then I share what I notice.
“Some people say you’re a volunteer coach,” Schaffer added. “I’m more of a volunteer observer.”
Schaffer also takes notes at SDSU home games from his complimentary seat in the Viejas Arena stands. Per NCAA rules, the SDSU Athletic Department is not permitted to pay for him to travel with the team, so Schaffer took it upon himself to attend 13 of the Aztecs’ 19 road games this season.
“It’s given Al a great outlet to come and spend time with us,” Dutcher said.
“To not use him as a resource would be foolish.”
Rich in his relationships
Earlier this season, D.J. Gay asked Schaffer if he was meeting the team in Laramie, Wyo., for its game against the Wyoming Cowboys, to which Schaffer responded, “I’m not going to be making the trip … The airplane ticket would have been $480.”
“I thought you were rich,” the Aztec guard said to Schaffer.
Recalling that conversation with Gay, Schaffer said, “I’m only rich in my relationships with D.J. and his teammates and the coaches. And I consider myself a rich man.”
Such has been Schaffer’s mentality, not only at SDSU, but during his 45-year high school coaching career as well.
“At every stop, my wife and I had just marvelous friends, parents, fans and players,” Schaffer said. “And that was really the best thing about coaching – the relationships.”
Schaffer has bonded with the Aztecs through the game of basketball. He helps several players with their free-throw techniques, including Tim Shelton and Malcolm Thomas, and he has stayed after practice with Kawhi Leonard so the sophomore forward can shoot more shots than if he was alone.
“That’s the best part of my day — spending (time) with the Aztecs,” Schaffer said.
A Road to Remember
When Schaffer is not spending time with the team, he directs his efforts toward Lillian's memory.
In addition to helping restore the pipe organ at the First Presbyterian Church in Blissfield, Mich., where she sang in the choir, and raising money for the Amyloidosis Foundation to fund research for finding a cure to the disease, Schaffer is training for his upcoming trip this summer to Spain. There, he will honor his deceased wife and her two sisters — who both passed away within seven weeks of Lillian’s death — by walking the Camino de Santiago de Compostela.
Schaffer will be accompanied by his daughter, Amanda, who made ceramic Dala horses that they will leave behind at shrines along the 500-mile pilgrimage.
“I’m hoping it brings closure,” he said.
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