The stories on this page are from survivors all over the US and Abroad.
Stories of life as a Polio Survivor from Pennsylvania.
Videos are at the Bottom of this Page​

​Painting in Life's Shadow: 
​One Artist's Struggles -
​Sharon Richardson
(written by Pamela Sergey)
 - - - - -
​Bonnie Kittle -
A Birthday She'll Never Forget
 - - - - -
​Polio Survivor's Offer Pandemic Perspective​ - ​(Audio) ​From NPR
A Description of PPS - by survivor Micki Minner
A Reassuring Touch from Eleanor Roosevelt - Ruthanna Thomas
​​A Story of Unbelievable Resilience and Determination  Jean Maddalena Rathgeber, A Gift from her son.
After Effects of Polio can Harm Survivors 40 years Later - Lucile Harford, an American, and Zohra Rajah of East Africa.  Two polio survivors from different regions of the world whose history with PPS is similar to many with this little-understood condition.
Ann Lee Hussey - Video Below
Charlie Haden - Famous Jazz Musician
​​​Christmas, 1953   By Joe Randig
Come Smile With Me - Peter Thwaites
Crackers and Courage - Charlotte Doan Clarkson
​David Salamone - Polio Survivor and Unsung Hero of the Polio Vaccine.  See additional Video Below: ​Vale David Salamone
Deborah Cunningham - Disability Advocate
Disabled by Polio, Enabled by Determination   - Anne Wafula Strike​
Disability?  What Disability? - Shane Chambers​
Famous People Who Have Had Polio
Fighting for My Life - Chava Willig Levy
​From Polio to Professional Dancer - Tanaquil Le Clercq​   snd her Biography
​From Polio Patient to Polio Voice - Daniel J. Wilson, PhD
Have YOU Ever Wondered?  Survivor Don Hunter has, and he's written a beautiful poem.
How Surviving Polio has Impacted my Personality​ - Abha Khetarpal
Illness is a Life Sentence - Susan Kerr 
I Woke Up and Couldn't Walk - Itzhak Pearlman
​In Search of "Normal"  Deb Berg Stambaugh
Ina Pinkney - Video Below
John Munsick - One Day He was Climbing Trees.  ​The Next?  He was headed for the hospital. 
John Nanni - Video(s) Below
Life After Polio - Video Below
Loving Joe.     By Linda Randig
Making Art from a Wheelchair - John Piccoli (Video Below)
​Martha ("Marty") Loudder - She's Resilient from her Head to her Toes
            Her Video, published by Orvis, "Toe To Toe With Trout" is below.
Moving the Post-Polio Conversation Forward - Wenzel Leff, MD Video Below
 ​My Polio Experience.    By Joe Randig
My Story - An Inconvenient Truth to those who Refuse Vaccines - Judith Saw Beatty
Not Just Polio - Richard Daggett
One Survivor's Story from Mexico - Esther Liliana Marasco Garrido
Peter Thwaites - A BBC Interview - Video Below
Polio Survivor Describes Lasting Impact of Disease - Kathy Parrish
Polio Survivor Reflects on the Last Great Epidemic - Survivor John Tierney
Polio Survivor Making a Difference
​Shirley Smith - She's Truly Living a Good Life
Sixty Years in an Iron Lung - Martha Mason (Video Below)
Sixty Years Later - Two Friends United - Susan Wickersham and Joan Hester
Sixty Nine Years after Surviving the Polio Epidemic - Barry McMahon
Sunny's Blog - Conversations On Living Well with Polio - Sunny Roller
The Man Who Learned to Walk Three Times - Peter Kavanaugh
​​The New Polio:  What Would Mom and Dad Have Done?  - Harry Donohue 
The Witness Trees   By Joe Randig
TV Host was a Polio Survivor - Bill Cullen
​Walk a Mile In My Shoes.  By Joe Randig
We Never Walk Alone​ By Diane Huff
What is it Like to Have Polio - Richard Daggett
Wilma Rudolph conquered poverty, racism, and Polio to became an Olympian 
                                                                      - - - - -
Picture
Toe to Toe with Trout - Martha Loudder
 - - - - -
 "We are very sad to share the news that David Salamone, featured in Jabbed-love, fear and vaccines,
​died on Friday September 7, 2018.  He was 28 years old.
  • David contracted polio from the live polio vaccine when he was a baby. It was later discovered he had a serious underlying immune disorder, which meant he was susceptible to many infections, including polio. He and his family successfully fought to have the live vaccine replaced by the safer inactivated version. Since 2000, when the CDC changed to the safer version, not a single child in America has contracted polio from the vaccine. David’s legacy rippled out across the world, changing the vaccination policy in many countries, including Australia.
  • David died as a result of complications from his underlying immune condition.
  • We remember David for his gentleness and his strength, an unusual combination. His humbleness in the face of his legacy was extraordinary. His generosity in sharing his experience with our film crew — and the world — was inspiring. 
  • ​He was also a great deal of fun.   We offer our deepest condolences to his family and friends."
                                                                                       Genepool Productions September, 2018



​Nancy Baldwin Carter
and 
The Nebraska Polio Survivors Assoc.



​Life After Polio -
Survivors at the Kenny Rehab Institute
​

Martha Mason:
​60 Years in an Iron Lung
 - - - - -
Decades after polio, Martha is among the last to still rely on an iron lung to breathe.
​The full article is available.

A Comprehensive Interview
with Polio Survivor John Nanni.
​
John is given the opportunity to speak about BOTH ​the Eradication Efforts
AND
Post-Polio Syndrome.



​A BBC Interview from the UK 
​with Survivor Peter Thwaites
   


​Moving the Post-Polio Conversation Forward 
 Survivor Wenzel A. Leff, MD

​John Piccoli - 
John makes art from old wrenches (or spanners a they are known in Australia), and all from working in his wheelchair.
                                                                               
​                                                                           Interviews with Three Polio Survivors:
                        Ann Lee Hussey                                         John Nanni                                                      Ina Pinkney