C.H. “Kit” Shaffer

Charles Henry \"Kit\" Shaffer of Lynchburg, VA died peacefully on Sept. 16, 2011 at The Elks National Home while listening to his son read his favorite turkey hunting story. Kit lived a robust 94 years as a renowned game biologist, conservationist, wild turkey evangelist, master hunting guide, story teller, collector, loving father and loyal friend.

Kit\"™s memorial epitaph reads: \"The Hunter Home From The Hills.\" 

He is survived by his son, Craig Christopher Shaffer, of Lynchburg, VA; daughter Sandra Shaffer Johnson and son-in-law Brian Robert Johnson of Asheville, NC; and daughter Sherry Shaffer Housholder of Dandridge TN. He was husband for 64 years to the late Janet LeBeau Shaffer.

Kit became widely known as Virginia\"™s \"Mr. Wild Turkey\" during his 33 years as biologist supervisor and field coordinator for the Virginia Department of Game & Inland Fisheries (DGIF). He is considered to be one of the game commission\"™s top five all-time most influential people.

He and his colleagues are credited with heralding the successful repopulation of wild turkeys across Virginia; for introducing Blaze Orange, and for the adoption of Virginia\"™s spring gobbler season. 

According to Roanoke Times outdoor writer Bill Cochran, Kit was \"the DGIF scientist who guided Virginia into the age of modern turkey management; what\"™s more, he also was one of the most skillful turkey hunters of his generation and an ambassador of the sport.\" 

Bob Duncan, DGIF Executive Director, has said that \"Historically, the name \"˜Kit Shaffer\"™ has been linked to the establishment and management of wild turkeys in Virginia. This man is a natural storyteller and teacher who draws on years of experience. His sense of humor is his hallmark.\" 

Kit was also a founder of the National Wild Turkey Federation in Fredricksburg, VA in 1973. The NWTF now has 250,000 members in 49 states and conserves 17 million acres for wildlife habitat. 

Born on Aug. 8 1917 in Jennerstown, PA to Walter Brubaker Shaffer and Marion Zimmerman, Kit and his two sisters grew up poor during the Great Depression. The young senior class president met his future wife, Janet Elmira Lebo, at Somerset High.

He attended Franklin Marshall College in Lancaster, PA where he earned a B.A. in biology and was a Phi Beta Kappa scholar. To pay his own tuition, he held down five part-time campus jobs, including washing dishes and making beds. 

The scrappy athlete became an All-Star center on the FM football team back in the days of leather helmets and rough combat. He sustained seven concussions and got his front teeth knocked out by football legend Vince Lombardi. He was also a star basketball guard.

Kit and Janet were married in New York City in 1941. She attended Columbia University in journalism and he worked as an industrial supervisor at Gem Safety Razor and at Sperry Gyroscope.

They moved to Blacksburg, VA in 1945 where he received a Masters in Wildlife Management from Virginia Polytechnic Institute in 1947. He and Janet spent a rugged six months trapping raccoons on a wilderness island near Back Bay for his thesis. They moved to Timberlake, VA to nurture three children, big gardens, and legendary turkey dogs. 

Over the years, Kit became known as the state\"™s authoritative wild turkey missionary. From public meetings to civic groups, he went from county to county as a grassroots activist to promote hunting ethics, conservation, and wildlife stewardship. A fierce opponent of timber clear-cutting, he lobbied the U.S. Forest Service and state legislators to enact selective harvesting and sustainable reforestation. 

He published more than 100 articles as outdoor editor for The Turkey Hunter magazine and was a frequent contributor to Virginia Wildlife. Kit received numerous professional awards from local, state and national organizations, including the Governor\"™s Award as Virginia\"™s \"Conservationist of the Year\" in 1979. 

He served on boards or was active with the Izaak Walton League, National Wildlife Federation, National Wild Turkey Federation, The Wildlife Society, Virginia Outdoor Writers, and the Virginia Archeological Society. 

Kit was also a member of the Forest Lions Club and the Elks Club. He served as a deacon at St. Andrews Presbyterian and as an active member of St. Stephens Episcopal Church in Forest, VA. While at the Elks Home from 2005 to 2011, he read The Bible nine times, visited the sick, and was a well-loved character. 

Kit\"™s life will be celebrated on Thursday, Sept. 22 at 2 p.m. with an informal memorial service at Timberlake Pavilion below the dam at the west end of South Timberlake Drive off Old Plantation Drive. If available, guests are optionally encouraged to wear an item of camouflage or Blaze Orange or to bring a turkey caller. 

The service, in conjunction with Tharp Funeral Home of Bedford, will be followed by a light reception from 3-5 p.m. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to the National Wild Turkey Federation or to the Elks National Home, Special Care unit. His ashes will be buried at St. Stephen's cemetery and scattered across the Blue Ridge Mountains.

 

Directions to Timberlake Pavilion

Address is 581 South Timberlake Drive, Lynchburg VA 24502

From 460 Business / Timberlake Road:

Turn onto Timberlake Drive beside the Koffee Kup Restaurant, make an immediate left onto Old Plantation Drive, turn right onto South Timberlake Drive, Pavilion will be approximately 1/4 mile. Please call Tharp Funeral Home Bedford if you need further assistance, 540-586-3443.