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Gunshot Wound Survivor Got Incredible Facial Transplant And Is Now Gracing The Pages Of GQ

Gunshot Wound Survivor Got Incredible Facial Transplant And Is Now Gracing The Pages Of GQ
By 

Associate Editor of Impact, The Huffington Post

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Richard Norris is no longer camera shy.

The 39-year-old, who'd been severely disfigured by an accidental gunshot wound to the face in 1997, was given a renewed sense of hope in 2012: A team of physicians led by Baltimore's Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez operated on Norris to give him an entirely new face. The monumental procedure was what Dr. Rodriguez called the "most extensive of all face transplants performed to date" in a video by the Telegraph.

Now, one 36-hour surgery and two years later, Norris has gone from hiding away in his parents' home to being featured in the August issue of GQ magazine, on newsstands now.


Photo: Dan Winters/GQ

Norris sat down with the men's lifestyle publication to recap, step-by-step, the roller coaster ride of his life, from the traumatic accident at his home 17 years ago to gracing the pages of a magazine that typically features fashionable Hollywood icons.

Despite the horrors of Norris' past, the Virginia man -- who said he's "rated in the top 50 miracles" in Japan -- is unsure if he'd erase the incident that left his parents covering the mirrors in their home so Norris wouldn't have to see his reflection.

"Those 10 years of hell I lived through, it has given me such a wealth of knowledge," Norris told The Associated Press last year. "It's unreal. It has put some of the best people in my life."


Norris' skin is inspected by Dr. Rodriguez after his face transplant surgery. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Since the surgery more than two years ago, Norris has transformed considerably in more ways than one. Physically, he is learning how to eat and speak again as his face continues to regain feeling. Psychologically, he now sees himself in the mirror again, has maintained his sense of humor and credits his faith for getting him through an experience like no other.

He also now has a girlfriend and is enrolled in online college courses, according to GQ.


Norris before his face transplant surgery (left) and 114 days post-surgery (right). (AP Photo/University of Maryland Medical Center)

While the surgery has dramatically improved the quality of Norris' life, his medical status will never be back to where it was before the accident. Norris takes multiple medications daily to stop his immune system from attacking the new face tissue, which his body is hardwired to reject. Any day, his immune system could begin rejecting the transplant.

But even with the challenges ahead, Norris said simple, everyday encounters with strangers make the surgery well worth it.

"There's no one paying attention," he told the AP of the staring and ridicule he'd previously received. "Unless they know me personally, they don't know I am a face transplant patient. That right there is the goal we had."

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Before You Go

Richard Norris, Post-Face Transplant
Richard Norris(01 of12)
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In this June 25, 2013 photo, Richard Norris talks to a friend after fishing in a stream near his home in Hillsville, Va. The man whose face was disfigured by a gunshot spent 15 years as a recluse, but now the 37-year-old is doing things he never would have before. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) (credit:AP)
Richard Norris, Andrew Kahle(02 of12)
Open Image Modal
In this June 25, 2013 photo, Richard Norris, right, shows friend Andrew Kahle, left, how to load line into a fly fishing rod at Norris' home in Hillsville, Va. Norris, whose face was disfigured by a gunshot, spent 15 years as a recluse, but now the 37-year-old is doing things he never would have before. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) (credit:AP)
Richard Norris, Andrew Kahle(03 of12)
Open Image Modal
In this June 25, 2013 photo, Richard Norris, back right, fishes in a stream near his home in Hillsville, Va., with friend Andrew Kahle, left. Norris, whose face was disfigured by a gunshot, spent 15 years as a recluse, but now the 37-year-old is doing things he never would have before. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) (credit:AP)
Richard Norris, Andrew Kahle(04 of12)
Open Image Modal
In this June 25, 2013 photo, Richard Norris, left, ties a fishing fly at his home in Hillsville, Va., as friend Andrew Kahle looks on. Norris, whose face was disfigured by a gunshot, spent 15 years as a recluse, but now the 37-year-old is doing things he never would have before. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) (credit:AP)
Richard Norris, Andrew Kahle(05 of12)
Open Image Modal
In this June 25, 2013 photo, Richard Norris, right, shows friend Andrew Kahle how to load line into a fly fishing rod at Norris' home in Hillsville, Va. Norris, whose face was disfigured by a gunshot, spent 15 years as a recluse, but now the 37-year-old is doing things he never would have before. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) (credit:AP)
Richard Norris(06 of12)
Open Image Modal
In this June 25, 2013 photo, Richard Norris ties a fishing fly at his home in Hillsville, Va. The man whose face was disfigured by a gunshot spent 15 years as a recluse, but now the 37-year-old is doing things he never would have before. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) (credit:AP)
Richard Norris(07 of12)
Open Image Modal
In this photo taken June 25, 2013 Richard Norris looks out from the porch of his home in Hillsville, Va. The man whose face was disfigured by a gunshot spent 15 years as a recluse, but now the 37-year-old is doing things he never would have before. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) (credit:AP)
Richard Norris(08 of12)
Open Image Modal
In this June 18, 2013 picture, Richard Norris completes homework for an online art history college course after visiting with doctors at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore. In the 15 years between a shotgun blast that ravaged the bottom half of Norris' face and the face transplant -- considered the most extensive face transplant performed to date -- that ended a hermit-like life for him, he faced cruelty from strangers, fought addiction and contemplated suicide. Now he's starting a new life with the hope that his life path will send a message of hope to people in similar situations and encourage empathy in others. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) (credit:AP)
Richard Norris, Eduardo Rodriguez(09 of12)
Open Image Modal
In this June 18, 2013 picture, Richard Norris's skin is inspected by Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez, who led the surgical team that performed Norris face transplant, during a visit at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore. In the 15 years between a shotgun blast that ravaged the bottom half of Norris' face and the face transplant -- considered the most extensive face transplant performed to date -- that ended a hermit-like life for him, he faced cruelty from strangers, fought addiction and contemplated suicide. Now he's starting a new life with the hope that his life path will send a message of hope to people in similar situations and encourage empathy in others. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) (credit:AP)
(10 of12)
Open Image Modal
In a series of four photos provided by the University of Maryland Medical Center and a June 18, 2013 Associated Press photo, face transplant recipient Richard Norris, the recipient of the most extensive face transplant performed to date, is seen in a prom photo, from left to right, a photo taken before his face transplant, a photo made six days after the transplant and a photo made 114 days after the transplant. Norris received the transplant in a 36-hour operation in March 2012. It included the replacement of both jaws, teeth, tongue, and skin and underlying nerve and muscle tissue from scalp to neck. Norris was injured in a gun accident in 1997. (AP Photo/University of Maryland Medical Center and Pat Semansky) (credit:AP)
Richard Norris(11 of12)
Open Image Modal
In this June 18, 2013 picture, Richard Norris sits in the office of Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez, who led the surgical team that performed Norris face transplant, at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore. In the 15 years between a shotgun blast that ravaged the bottom half of Norris' face and the face transplant -- considered the most extensive face transplant performed to date -- that ended a hermit-like life for him, he faced cruelty from strangers, fought addiction and contemplated suicide. Now he's starting a new life with the hope that his life path will send a message of hope to people in similar situations and encourage empathy in others. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) (credit:AP)
Richard Norris, Eduardo Rodriguez(12 of12)
Open Image Modal
In this June 18, 2013 picture, Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez, who led the surgical team that performed Richard Norris face transplant, photographs Norris at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore. In the 15 years between a shotgun blast that ravaged the bottom half of Norris' face and the face transplant -- considered the most extensive face transplant performed to date -- that ended a hermit-like life for him, he faced cruelty from strangers, fought addiction and contemplated suicide. Now he's starting a new life with the hope that his life path will send a message of hope to people in similar situations and encourage empathy in others. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) (credit:AP)
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