Autumn2004
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http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,359304,00.html
Dianne Odell, 61, had been confined to the 7-foot-long machine since she was stricken by polio at 3 years old.
"We did everything we could do but we couldn't keep her breathing," said Beyer, who was called to the home shortly after the power failed. "Dianne had gotten a lot weaker over the past several months and she just didn't have the strength to keep going."
Odell was afflicted with "bulbo-spinal" polio three years before a polio vaccine was discovered and largely stopped the spread of the crippling childhood disease.
She spent her life in the iron lung, cared for by her parents and other family members. Though confined inside the 750-pound apparatus, Odell managed to get a high school diploma, take college courses and write a children's book.
Odell was determined to live a full life — she earned a diploma from Jackson High School as a home-bound student and an honorary degree from Freed-Hardeman College. A voice-activated computer allowed her to write a children's book, "Less Light," about Blinky, a tiny star who dreams of becoming a wishing star.
In a 2001 interview with The Associated Press, she said she wanted to show children, especially those with physical disabilities, that they should never give up. "It's amazing what you can accomplish if you see someone do the same thing," she said
snip~
Im really surprised they didnt have a generator already but with her getting weak it was probably near that time anyways. It makes my little complaints in life seem so petty when I see someone who has such a restricted life and still made the best of it. Im going to look up about buying the book.
Dianne Odell, 61, had been confined to the 7-foot-long machine since she was stricken by polio at 3 years old.
"We did everything we could do but we couldn't keep her breathing," said Beyer, who was called to the home shortly after the power failed. "Dianne had gotten a lot weaker over the past several months and she just didn't have the strength to keep going."
Odell was afflicted with "bulbo-spinal" polio three years before a polio vaccine was discovered and largely stopped the spread of the crippling childhood disease.
She spent her life in the iron lung, cared for by her parents and other family members. Though confined inside the 750-pound apparatus, Odell managed to get a high school diploma, take college courses and write a children's book.
Odell was determined to live a full life — she earned a diploma from Jackson High School as a home-bound student and an honorary degree from Freed-Hardeman College. A voice-activated computer allowed her to write a children's book, "Less Light," about Blinky, a tiny star who dreams of becoming a wishing star.
In a 2001 interview with The Associated Press, she said she wanted to show children, especially those with physical disabilities, that they should never give up. "It's amazing what you can accomplish if you see someone do the same thing," she said
snip~
Im really surprised they didnt have a generator already but with her getting weak it was probably near that time anyways. It makes my little complaints in life seem so petty when I see someone who has such a restricted life and still made the best of it. Im going to look up about buying the book.