Leiper, Blais have heart-to-heart over health scare

On Thursday morning, less than 24 hours after suffering a heart attack while shovelling snow, Kitchissippiward Coun. Jeff Leipertook time to weigh in on an item before the city's planning committee.

"It looks like the site planstuff went through easy-peasy. I wanted to be there to support it," Leiper, 48, texted his colleague, committee chair Jan Harder.

Coun. Harder, who read the message aloud during the meeting,textedback tellingLeiperto relax, and askedhim how he was feeling.

"I am excellent. I want to go shovel a bike lane,"Leiperresponded, drawing laughter from the audience in the committee room.

Blaishad heart attack at 32

Among the other councillorsatthe meeting was Stephen Blais, who in 2013 suffered a serious heart attack during a workout. Blais, then just 32, underwent CPR and was later placed in a medically induced coma.

He spent close to four months in hospital undergoing treatment and rehabilitation before eventually returning to work at City Hall.

My advice to Jeff is to listen to his doctors and his nurses.- Coun. Stephen Blais

BlaissaidThursday he'dalready reached out to Leiper.

"He sounded in very, very good spirits," Blaissaid. "My advice to Jeff is to listen to his doctors and his nurses and hisorderlies. The doctors will give you very good theoretical advice, in my experience, and the nurses and occupational therapists gavevery good practical,real-life advice.

"I think listening to that advice from all sides is the best way to ensure you have a speedy recovery, and one that's going to last a long time."

Blaissaid learning of his colleague's heart attacktriggered a flood of emotions in him.

"It's something I think aboutpretty often," Blais said. But there's an upside to the whole experience, too.

"It just gives us a better appreciation of the place that we live in, and the kinds of experiences that are available to us."

Asked whether he believes, either in his case or Leiper's, that the stress of the job led to their heart attacks, Blaissaid no.

"I don't think so.I'm certainly someone who thrives off stress. No matter what job I would be in, I'dprobably live offthe stress. My sense from Jeff is that he operates similarly."