PW Shaffer

“Whatever you put your mind to, you can accomplish.” These are the words that P.W. Shaffer lives by and teaches his children, because he knows from personal experience these words are true.P.W., a 1988 graduate of Brunswick High School, received the Frederick Community College Student Scholarship. His father’s unexpected death right after his high school graduation changed his family’s life dramatically, and P.W. suddenly found himself the man of the family, helping his mother navigate the sale of his father’s dental practice, among other things. “I had to grow up very quickly,” said P.W. “I learned a lot about business, on the fly.”

Family and friends encouraged P.W. to stick to his college plan. Since both his parents were medical professionals in the dental and nursing fields, he charted a course to become a physical therapist. In 1991, he graduated from Frederick Community College with an associate’s degree in pre-physical therapy. He completed his undergraduate degree at Beaver College (now Arcadia University) near Philadelphia, PA, with a degree in psychology. Obtaining these degrees was not easy, as P.W. had to also work part-time while going to school.  Shortly after, he was accepted to the physical therapy program at University of Maryland Eastern Shore. Not long into the program, P.W. realized this wasn’t the career path he wanted.

Needing to support himself, he went to work for a nonprofit organization located in Gaithersburg, took graduate courses part-time to earn his master’s in business administration at Frostburg State University, and then worked with several companies in the nonprofit sector who specialized in finance and banking until coming to work for Sandy Spring Bank in 2008. Currently, P.W. is a Deposit Relationship Manager with the Commercial Banking Group.

Now married with children, P.W. still lives and works in Frederick County, a place he dearly loves. Having grown up actively participating in variety of sports, he now coaches youth teams and derives great satisfaction from mentoring youth and giving back to his community this way. When asked what advice he would give to college-bound youth, he said “It’s okay to ask for help, and to accept help that will allow you to accomplish your goals. A lot of people don’t like to ask, but there’s nothing wrong with doing so. It was very humbling to receive a scholarship from the Community Foundation and it laid the cornerstone for my educational success.”

P.W. has indeed accomplished what he put his mind to – obtaining higher education degrees that have contributed to his professional success, and doing so through some difficult times in his life. “If you can learn to adapt and evolve and continue to pursue your goals in spite of obstacles, you’ll be okay.”