SAN DIEGO — A World War II veteran is grateful a local doctor took a chance to help save his life when a trip to the hospital room unexpectedly turned into a lifelong friendship.
World War II veteran, Bill Mellos, and Sharp Memorial Hospital's Dr. Arvin Narula may seem like an unlikely duo to be best buds, yet they first bonded over shoes when Mellos noticed his doctor was wearing Air Jordan sneakers.
"I asked him, 'where did he get the shoes?' He said 'online.' That didn’t mean anything. I don’t know what 'online' is. I couldn't believe he paid $200 for those things. I told him, 'you’re a damn fool! You’re not a basketball player, you’re a surgeon!' And the ice was broken and we’ve been buddies ever since," said Mellos.
The ice broke three years ago when Mellos needed surgery on his heart which can be very high risk for someone who is 91 years old. That’s when he met Dr. Arvin Narula.
"This guy was told that they shouldn’t have worked on me because I was too old and let me die," said Mellos.
"Age is just a number and 91 for one person doesn’t mean 91 for another person," said Dr. Narula.
Despite the odds, Dr. Narula took the chance to save Mellos' life.
"What happened in his case is his heart dilated out. So, we were able to take two clips and clip his valve together to stop the leak," said Dr. Narula.
Today, Mellos is 94 years old; healthy, and happy to be alongside his wife, Joyce, of 53 years.
"I'm tickled to death. I'm still here. I'm going to 100. I will be 95 soon, then only 5 years to go," said Mellos.
Thanks to Dr. Narula, they are both popular on TikTok. Dr. Narula even bought Mellos a new pair of shoes, a pair of Air Jordan's in fact!
"That is a $200 shoe. I wouldn’t pay $35 for it," jokes Mellos.
A doctor and World War II vet are now friends until the end, "sole-mates" that is.
Mellos has some advice for younger generations.
"Drink cheap whiskey and chase pretty girls," he laughs.
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