(First of a series)
The Greenbelt Downs family held a reunion in West Virginia in July at the Three Otters Eco-Retreat on the shores of the Potomac River outside Paw Paw. One family member wasn’t there and the Downs family couldn’t have been happier.
Zachary Downs Shattuck’s family owned the resort and he was usually up there summers working. But this summer and last, he had been in Colorado.
The phone call came on September 24, 1997. Teresa Downs Shattuck, Zach’s mom, sharing the news she’d just received, said, “We just came from Zach’s appointment. He has hypochondroplasia dwarfism.” The family had known for some time that Zach was slipping right off the bottom of the growth charts. Now their fears were confirmed. How was Zach ever to live a normal, ordinary life?
According to the website bstigmafree.org, approximately 30,000 people in the U.S. are dwarfs at less than 4 feet 10 inches tall and nearly all are born to normal-height parents. Of the roughly 200 forms of dwarfism, none can be prevented since they are genetic in nature. Before he reached the age of 2, at a follow-up appointment, the pediatrician asked Zach to “throw the ball.” Something special happened. It was clear Zach had an arm.
From his earliest years in Greenbelt, Zach was fascinated by balls, any kind. Zach first played T-ball in Greenbelt and from the beginning the height difference was dramatic. Comments ranged from “Oh, look how cute! Is he somebody’s little brother? I wonder how come he’s on the field?” to “Won’t he get hurt?”
Of course, by his second time at bat, the coaches and parents were shouting, “Move back! This kid can hit!” On Zach’s eighth birthday, he wept because his parents thoughtlessly got him a bicycle, not a ball.
Zach attended Greenbelt Nursery School and his dad, Rich, was on the board of directors. Zach also attended kindergarten at Greenbelt Elementary School, graduating in 2002. That summer, he and his family, including baby sister Casey, moved to Mount Airy, Md.
Zach didn’t just play sports. He lived and breathed sports. From his earliest days in T-ball, and through his years of soccer and baseball, he not only participated, but excelled. He was a natural athlete.
He always had a consistent set of fans, given the 14 first cousins – all children of the eight kids of Jack and Dee Downs, Greenbelt residents since 1955. One of the Downs, Paul, was Greenbelt’s Outstanding Citizen in 2017. A big impetus for the fandom is that at every level, the family assumed it would be Zach’s last opportunity to compete equally with the normal kids who towered over him.
But somehow, Zach kept going. He’s played team soccer, baseball and basketball at every level, and in high school, played junior varsity basketball, wrestled varsity and started on the soccer team in the Maryland state semifinals for South Carroll High School against Fallston. Before a large crowd on a chilly Friday night, Zach’s team lost a close game.
Zach participated in the 2013 World Dwarf Games at Michigan State University in Lansing. The World Dwarf Games take place every four years bringing Little People from around the world for an Olympic-style athletic competition.
That year, in pure Zach fashion, he signed up for a host of sporting events, including sports he’d never tried, such as track and field. At the last minute, Zach, at his dad’s urging, signed up for a swimming event – the 25-meter freestyle. “But I can’t swim,” Zach protested.
“It’s 25-meters. No turns, and just don’t breathe,” his dad replied.
After the race, Zach was approached by several of the swimmers and coaches. “Good form. You’re a natural.” “Who do you swim for?” “Who’s coaching you?” “Are you trying out for the Paralympics?”
(Next week, the story continues. Zach enters Frostburg, finds a coach and starts his amazing journey to Tokyo and the 2021 Paralympics.)