Joseph Lee Shaffer

Joseph Lee Shaffer, 88, of 229 Virginia Avenue, Bluefield, Virginia, passed away in Bluefield Regional Medical Center on Wednesday, November 18, 2009, after a short illness. He was born on October 10, 1921, in Mount Lookout, WV. He was the son of the late Russell and Maunie Shaffer of Mount Lookout, WV. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Verbena Shaffer. He is survived by four children, Sharon Lambert of Rocky Mount, VA, Edward Shaffer and wife, Susan, of Wheeling, WV, Judith Dalton and husband, Gary, of Bluefield, VA, and Lisa Bird and husband, Kerry, of Charleston, WV. He also had ten grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. He has four surviving siblings, Clinton Shaffer, Leonard Shaffer and Margaret Cook, all of Mount Lookout, WV, and Thelma Maynard of Fruitland Park, FL., and is predeceased by five other siblings. He also is survived by a brother-in-law and wife, Lake and Essie McClung of Gainesville, FL. He was an elder of the Bluefield Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses. His entire life centered around his love for his heavenly father, Jehovah, his love for his family and friends, and his conviction that very soon the very enemy that claimed his life will be done away with forever. He looked forward to a New World very near at hand in which humans will never again be faced with illness, death, suffering or any of the other distressing conditions that face humankind today. His greatest wish was to see his whole family again in the Resurrection here on earth described in Revelation 21:3,4, to once again fulfill the purpose that our Heavenly Father originally began, but which has remained the same – for humans to live forever in peace and perfect health on a cleansed earth where never again will anyone lose a loved one to the enemy, death. He was not only a father, a grandfather and a great-grandfather – he was a beloved friend to all who knew him. During his lifetime he touched the lives of everyone he knew and spent his time unselfishly serving others. He was an ordinary man who lived an extraordinary life. He will be greatly missed. Family visitation will be held on Friday, November 20, 2009, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Cravens-Shires Funeral Home. A Memorial Service will be held at the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses located on Old Bramwell Road, Bluefield, WV on Saturday, November 21, 2009, at 2:00 p.m. Jeremy Dillon will be officiating. Graveside Service will be held at Woodlawn Memorial Park located on Route 52 in Bluewell, WV. Family members will be serving as pallbearers.