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 The 64-year-old small-business owner had the warning signs: tired
and easily winded, shortness of breath, minimal feelings of
discomfort around the heart.
Shuff, who is also director of the Logan and Mason County Salvation
Army, received life-saving care for his Oct. 5 heart attack at
Memorial Medical Center in Springfield. He then returned home to
Lincoln to start cardiac rehabilitation at Abraham Lincoln Memorial
Hospital.
He’s already back to coordinating the annual kettle drive for the
Salvation Army this holiday season – this year with a new name: “A
Heart for the Kettles.”
 “A ‘Heart for the Kettles’ came from doing my rehab program at ALMH,”
Shuff said. “The rehab staff has been very encouraging. I actually
feel better now than I have for some time.”
Shuff is nearing the halfway point of a 12-week rehabilitation
program. He does one-hour workouts on five or six machines three
times a week. He's already noticed a change in his strength and
endurance, and his resting heart rate is adjusting to a more normal
level as well.
The convenience of the hospital’s local rehab program is not lost on
him.
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“We get the kettles started at the crack of dawn, and they go until 9 p.m. each
evening,” he said. “Being able to come in for rehab first thing in the morning
is worth everything. And the quality of the program is top notch. They know what
to test for in each individual and what to work on. That gives you a level of
peace and confidence.”
To help ring the bells or make a donation to the Salvation Army this holiday
season, call 217-732-7890 and leave a voice mail. Shuff will be sure to call you
back.
“This community has a heart for the kettles,” he said.
[Michael Leathers, Memorial Health
Systems]
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