Sad news for the family, friends and acquaintances of Lori and George Schappel. After challenging the boundaries of medicine and science for more than 62 years, the conjoined twins died this month in Pennsylvania, United States.
Throughout their lives, the brothers followed different paths (they studied different subjects, each had their own interests, relationships, etc.). According to the obituary published by the Leibensperger funeral home in Hamburg, the well-known relatives died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. At the moment, the cause of death has not been revealed.
For many, the very existence of the brothers was an inexplicable fact. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, they were the oldest living conjoined twins in the world, which is why their death has caused a general shock in today’s society.
When they turned 50, Lori Schappel gave some statements that caused a lot of talk because they showed the doctors’ surprise with her case and the great vital challenge that living like them entailed: ”When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we would make it. at 30, but we proved them wrong.”
The Schappel brothers were born on September 18, 1961 in West Reading, Pennsylvania. The twins had different brains, but they were joined by the skull, a very delicate area compared to other types of conjoined twins joined by other parts of the body (chest, back, pelvis, etc.). In this case, Lori carried George on an adaptable rolling stool, since he had spina bifida and was shorter. In 2007, George declared himself transgender and demonstrated that each conjoined twin can experience a completely different process.
Despite the strange condition with which they lived since birth, they both managed to complete high school and even went to university. Although society looked at them strangely, they tried to lead a common life and even had individual dates. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Lori was engaged, but her intended husband tragically died in a car accident. As stated in the obituary that announced his death, since the age of 24 they have maintained their own home and have traveled through different territories.
Throughout their existence, conjoined twins have participated in countless medical programs, documentaries and television pieces of all kinds. In these spaces, both tried to give an image of normality and declared that they completely ruled out the idea of ??separating, since there was no need.
Although the presence of the other denied them any type of intimacy, the brothers adapted and learned to live with this condition. As Lori explained in a 1997 documentary, having a Siamese sibling means, among other things, “not getting everything you want right when you want it.” In the same documentary, George made it clear that he didn’t want to separate from his sister either: ”Why fix what isn’t broken?”