HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1997-10-29, Page 16Blanche misses Halloween night in 1941
On Halloween night, as
Blanche remembers it, she
didn't feel well and could not
join the others in "tricking or
treating. Her mother and the
doctor thought she had the
flu. It was 1941 and she was
eight. November dragged on
and the symptoms persisted
keeping her out of school
much of the time. Blanche
was the younger of my two
sisters.
At about the same time that
Japanese planes were heading
towards Pearl Harbour she
was sitting in our tiny kitchen
with her knees up, resting a
school book against her legs -
doing her homework.
As sometimes happens
when circulation is restricted
there is a feeling of numb-
ness...as if a leg has fallen
asleep. Stepping to the floor,
it gave way and hung limp as
if it wasn't there at all. Dr.
McMaster came. He said
Blanche had infantile paraly-
sis and it paralyzed her left
leg. It was December 7,
1941.
It was believed to be very
contagious so serious steps
had to be taken immediately
to keep the disease from
spreading. Early the next
morning the medical officer
of health, Dr. Burrows,
instructed Jim Ryan, the town
constable to nail a big red
card on the house, just right
of the front door. The sign
read...in five lines - Danger -
Quarantined - Poliomyelitis -
Do Not Enter - By Order of
the Medical Officer of
Health.
Poliomyelitis was not a dis-
ease that caused serious
paralysis until early in this
century. Prior to about 1910
most children got the disease
in their early years. Once
known as infantile paralysis,
a name that stayed around
until the early 1940s - later
simply called polio. It is
caused by a virus that strikes
the spinal column and can be
spread to -anywhere in the
body.
In the weeks following the
q ,ai'antine. each day was
filled with fear and confusion
for it appeared to be an epi-
demic with a disease that
people and even doctors now
knew little about. Marguerite
and I could not go to school -
or even leave the house. Dad
could not work and live at
home so he slept in a cot in
the back shop at his store.
The milkman from Goudie's
Dairy stepped from his horse-
drawn wagon and set the
milk at the end of the side-
walk. He would not venture
up to the front steps. And he
refused to pick up the glass
pints and quarts that were
empty and left by mother
outside by the door.
Maxine Dunlop, a girlfriend
about the same age as
Blanche, gathered a group of
neighbourhood kids together
who would come after school
and wave at her from the
street.
The only contact outside
our house was by telephone
but there was no phone at the
store. in fact the fear of
catching the disease was so
great that few people ven-
tured into the store. Food was
left by a cautious delivery
man who would set a box of
groceries on the steps at the
front door and get away as
fast as possible. Dad would
is our..
Friday
iALSW'WE'EN BASH
HANIA
with
TWIN
uting the musk of Canada
Country Star Shania Twain"
come to the front of the
house at noon and in the
evening, and from a few feet
away talk io mother through
a front window...and by this
time there was a sprinkle of
snow on the ground.
Many fared worse than
Blanche. In some cases chest
muscles stopped working.
The iron lung was developed
to make patients breath by
sucking the air out of the
large tank -like apparatus and
pumping it back in again -
instead of pumping air down
into their lungs. When the
epidemic first broke out in
1937 there was only one iron
Blanche's recovery is a tes- poliomyelitis was never far
lung in Canada, located in the
Hospital for Sick Children in timony to care and attention from his mind. Now eight -
Toronto. Realizing the need she received from her par- year-old Paul is 59 and sitting
and working 24 -hours -a -day ents. By 1943 her leg was at the same cabinet table
in the basement of the hospi- developing and growing. where his father took the call
tal, 27 more were constructed While homebound her in 1946 from his mother.
in six weeks and rushed to teacher, Miss Ella Elder The era of major polio epi -
wherever needed. brought school work to the demics spanned the years
The quarantine was lifted house and in the early 1950s 1927 to 1962 and came in
after three weeks and after graduating from Grade four distinct waves. During
Blanche was taken to War 13 she attended Stratford those years over 50,000
Memorial Children's Normal School. Her first Canadians were affected
Hospital in London. She was school was S.S. No. 1 in claiming over 4,000 lives.
allowed to come home for Hibbert on the highway just But many lived...thanks to
Christmas and returned early west of Dublin. Now retired the Roosevelts and the
in 1942 for physiotherapy after a lifetime of teaching, Martins and Jonas Salk and
and treatment. She was over- mostly in western Ontario, Albert Sabin...and so many
joyed when the buoyancy of she lives in London with her others. Many were afflicted,
her body in the hospital pool husband who is also a retired some well known, like Lois
allowed her to stand and hold teacher. Marshall and Joanie
herself erect - and each day It was a long road from Mitchell...And, oh, yes...my
the pain was 1ess°severe`-A- . Ahem tohew, And it involved :sister Blanche, who still
' more people than JonasSalk remembers that she missed
stretcher -type bed was trade
with canvas pulled taut over a and Albert Sabin. It was trag- "tricking and treating" on
steel frame fitted with casters is that Franklin Roosevelt Halloween night in 1941.
on each of the four corners contracted polio in 1921...but
and from there she moved to he was truly the spark that
a wheelchair. Marguerite got polio out of the darkness
pushed the wheelchair around' of fear in Canada as well as
town so Blanche could get United States. Because of his
out in the fresh air and visit political stature and influ-
her friends...and never more ence, unprecedented amounts
than two feet from the chair of money were raised for
was Rex, our normally placid treatment and research by the
tail -wagging fox terrier. National Foundation of
Small as he was, if anyone Infantile Paralysis - which
ventured too close to the was the U.S. "March of
chair fangs were bated and Dimes" • a 1141116 10111 wit
his unchareetedetic growl lot by comedian Eddie Cantor.
them know he was Blanche's Roosevelt masted the foto-
protector. dation and it zed and
, By early summer a special revolutionized lo research
shoe was fitted with a heavy efforts in bothCanada and
steel caliper brace from her the U.S. The success in find -
foot to her hip. Many months ing a vaccine was in part due
later a shorter leg brace was to the substantial amounts of
fitted. Her right leg was nor- money that quietly flowed
mal but her left leg from her over the border to Connaught
knee to her ankle was a little Laboratories in Toronto from
bigger than a broom stick... the massive "March of
but she Was lucky. For at Dimes" fundraising success
eight and still growing, once in the U.S.
the disease was gone the leg Another event that moved
might begin to develop and the dreaded disease to the
grow again...and it did. front burner in Canada was
What happened to Blanche not unlike what happened in
was happening in towns and the United States. While
cities across North America. attending an important meet -
The 1941 to 1946 epidemic ing in Ottawa a man received
killed 499 Canadians, 93 in a phone call from his wife.
Ontario with hundreds more She was frantic and said,
disabled. It was known as the "Come home, come home,
"'Third Wave" and coincided our son has polio." It was
with the arrival in Canada of high level drama for the call
Sister Kenny who promoted a was from Nell Martin in
radical new massage treat- Windsor, the wife of Paul
ment. Because of the lack of Martin, telling him, while he
real knowledge of the disease was attending a cabinet meet -
and the widespread fear, peo- ing that eight-year-old Paul
pie were willing to try any- Jr. had contracted polio.
thing...although her treatment Prime Minister St. Laurent
was widely criticized by the told him..."Go" and C.D.
medical profession she Howe arranged for a govern -
became popular with the pub- ment plane. You can imagine
lie and the press. A movie the feeling a father has hear -
made about her in 1946 con- ing news like that...and you
tributed to the continuing kg- can also imagine that when
end of "Sister Kenny" and he was made minister of
her treatment. health a few months later,
1_.t
EAR TA
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'Tickets en saki et...
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The Seaforth Harmony Kings
invite you
to their Second Annual
Christmas Dinner & Dance
Fri, December 12th
at the Seaforth District Community Centre
6:00 pm: Social Hour
7:00 pm: Buffet Dinner (catered by Grace Campbell)
9:00-1: Dancing to the Royalaires
Tickets $2500/plate
For tickets or information call:
522-0469, 527-0373
or 345-2447
PROCEEDS TO HARMONIZE FOR SPEECH
October 31/97
9 - 1 am
Dublin District
Community Centre
$5.00/person
Age of Malority
Lunch Provided
Draw for
Las Vegas Trip
10 be made at
dance
EGMONDVILLE
UNITED CHURCH
PRESENTS iTS
THIRD
DARE TO SHARE
AUCTION
Saturday, November 8, 1997
Seaforth District
High School
7 pm
Viewing: 5 - 7 pm
Donations: CaII
522-1069
522-0418
EVERY TUES. & THURS.
2U¢ Wing Nite
SAT. NITE
PARTY WITH
SOUND IMAGE D.J.
FRI. NOV. 7
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THE TRIBUTE
I TO GARTH BROOKS
TlX 56.00 ON SALE NOW
The Family of
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wish to invite you to
come and help
celebrate her
80th
Birthday
at the
Agricultural Building
in Seaforth on
Sun., Nov. 2, 1997
1-4 p.m.
Best Wishes Only
kien Stithb.&
THEDFORD
Since 1978
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Authorised Sales, Installation
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SANTA CLAUS
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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 28th 7:00 P.M. MAIN ST., SEAFORTH 7
7
�tQR
eM97 "Victorian Christmas"
7 7
7
i
9
PARADE ROUTE ...
This year the parade route will start at the Seaforth Co-op (Do -it
centre), travel down Main Street to the Seaforth Ag. Society's
Round House where Santa will give out candy. Please feel free
to bring your kids to the Round House to visit with Santa.
Remember we start at Seafolth Co-op and end at the Round
House!
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