Local dentist shares how polio took his mother’s life when he was a young boy

Photos by Kim Pritt – Albion Rotary Club member Don Bishop, a dentist, speaks about Rotary’s efforts to defeat polio during Thursday’s meeting at Tillman’s Village Inn. Bishop shared his family’s difficult experiences with the disease.

By Kim Pritt, Correspondent

ALBION – Rotary Club International joined the fight to eradicate polio in 1985 with their Polio Plus Program – a world-wide commitment to raise funds and awareness to combat this devastating disease.

Poliovirus is a highly contagious virus that affects humans with no known cure. At one time 350,000 children were diagnosed with polio each year world-wide. Through research and vaccines made available in the early 1950s, polio has been nearly wiped out in most of the world.

This past year, only two countries – Afghanistan and Pakistan – have reported new cases of polio and Africa has not seen a new case in over a year. However, as long as there continue to be new cases reported, Rotary Club International’s Polio Plus Program will continue its work to raise awareness and funds.

Locally, Albion Rotary Club has been a strong supporter of the Polio Plus Program since its inception in 1985. To commemorate World Polio Day, the Albion club devoted its regular Thursday meeting to raising awareness and funds for this disease and the program committed to eradicating it.

The eradication of polio is not only a priority for the Albion Rotary Club, but it is also very personal for Albion Rotary member, Don Bishop.

Bishop spoke at the Thursday meeting about his personal experience with polio. When he was a child, his family was exposed to the poliovirus, resulting in two of his family members contracting the disease. Bishop’s mother was severely afflicted with the disease, causing her to be completely paralyzed from the neck down and confined to an iron lung.

Bishop talked about visiting his mother in a clinic in New York City where she was isolated with other polio victims in an effort to control the spread of the disease. They were eventually able to bring their mother home with her iron lung after they converted their living room into a hospital room for her, but she soon had to return to the hospital and succumbed to the disease in 1957.

Albion Rotary Club President Karen Sawicz, right, presents Don Bishop with a certificate for 25 polio vaccinations to be donated in his name.

He went on to say that at the age of 7, he and his sister, aged 4, were placed in a vaccine trial because of the unknown risk of them passing the disease on to others. They discovered that he did receive the vaccine, but his sister had received a placebo. Shortly after that, his sister began to exhibit symptoms of the disease.

Bishop’s sister developed a much milder case and responded to various therapies over the years, including painting therapy. She earned an art scholarship to Nazareth College and went on to a career as an art teacher.

Bishop talked about seeing images of clinics with rows and rows of thousands of iron lungs and stated those images were not an exaggeration, as he witnessed similar scenes while visiting his mother. As further research and the success of the vaccine helped to reduce the numbers of people diagnosed with polio, the use of the iron lungs has also reduced.

Bishop shared that he recently read that in 1959 there were 1,200 people confined to an iron lung and in 2004 there were only 39 such people. Others in the group commented about knowing children here in our community during the 1950s and 1960s, who had polio and how terrifying it was during the height of the epidemic.

During the Albion Rotary Club’s meeting two sets of Sabres hockey tickets were donated and auctioned off for the purpose of donating the funds raised to the Polio Plus Program. The Gates Foundation has teamed up with Rotary Club International and will do a two-to-one match of any funds raised for the Polio Plus Program. So, thanks to the Gates Foundation, the $120 raised in the auction will be tripled to make a $360 donation to the Polio Plus Program.

In addition to raising awareness and funds for the Polio Plus Program, it is Albion Rotary Club’s practice to present a certificate to their guest speakers indicating a pledge to vaccinate 25 children in countries still reporting new polio cases in the name of the guest speaker. Don Bishop was presented with a certificate for sharing his family’s story at the Thursday meeting.

Provided photos – Student Mykaela Hill presents one of the pillows the class made to Dr. Supriya Mohile at UR Medicine’s Wilmot Cancer Institute at Highland Hospital in Rochester.

Press Release, Wilmot Cancer Institute at University of Rochester Medical Center

ROCHESTER – During a reception today at Pluta Cancer Center, eighth-graders from Carl I. Bergerson Middle School in Albion presented 70 ponchos they made in their Family and Consumer Science class for women who are facing breast cancer.

The students today also presented 50 pillows to both the Breast Cancer Coalition of Rochester and UR Medicine’s Highland Hospital.

Seventeen students from Albion Middle School presented – and modeled – ponchos for patients undergoing radiation therapy at Wilmot Cancer Institute’s Pluta Cancer Institute in Henrietta.

The ponchos are more comfortable than a hospital gown and help women feel more secure and cozy while undergoing radiation therapy that breast cancer patients often receive daily for five to seven weeks.

The pillows help provide underarm support where lymph nodes have been removed and also help increase comfort for patients in other ways.

Kimberly Toombs, the class’s teacher, gratefully received a poncho from Pluta and pillows from BCCR and Highland Hospital during her treatment, which began after she was diagnosed in 2014.

Judy Zeeman-Golden (left), social worker and poncho project organizer at Pluta Cancer Center, poses with Kimberly Toombs, family and consumer science teacher at Albion Middle School and breast cancer survivor.

Having sewing skills as a family and consumer science teacher, she wanted to give back to the projects that had helped her. This was music to the ears of Judy Zeeman-Golden, a social worker at Pluta who manages the Poncho Project.

“The Pluta Cancer Foundation buys the fabric for the ponchos but what’s hard is making sure I have enough sewers to keep the project going. Until Kim came along, I was constantly scratching my head,” Zeeman-Golden said. “Kim has been this gift from the poncho gods. She kept busy while recovering by making ponchos, then got her class involved. She knew how wonderful it was to have because she’d been given one.”

Toombs says getting her class involved in this project not only helps those affected by breast cancer but also provides a valuable service learning opportunity for the students.

“Service learning engages the students in that it allows them to become actively involved in projects,” Toombs said. “When they have the ability to make something that will help someone else, it becomes personal to them.”

The tag that will be attached to each poncho to inform the recipient who created them.

Ashley Wiegele is pictured in her senior photo.

ALBION – Ashley Wiegele was only a few days away from her high school graduation when she was in a boating accident on Lake Ontario on June 20, 2014.

Ashley, then 17, wasn’t able to participate in commencement. She was paralyzed from the chest down.

She is home in an apartment with her mother, and receives physical and occupational therapy. Ashley is hopeful she will one day walk again.

For right now, she is mostly limited to her apartment, which isn’t handicapped accessible.

Her friends and the staff at Albion Central School want to give her more freedom to be out in the community. They have organized a benefit on Oct. 24, with a goal to raise at least $10,000 to buy a van with a wheelchair for Ashley.

“Rock ‘n Roll for Ashley” will feature live music from several local musical acts from 3 to 10 p.m. at the Albion Elk’s Lodge, 428 West State St. in Albion. The event also includes a giant basket raffle, pumpkin decorating for kids and adults, and side raffles.

“Albion and Orleans County are great. When somebody is in need they’re there to help,” said Scott Green, a guidance counselor at the high school and also the event chairman.

Ashley’s injuries have required her mom to become her full-time caregiver, resulting in a loss of income for the family.

Ashley has been mostly confined to a bed at her apartment. She only leaves the house for doctor’s appointments, which requires calling for a special van to transport her, Green said.

“This is about her mobility, to allow her to get up and go,” Green said. “Having a van will give Ashley some independence, allowing her to do things that other people take for granted, like grocery shop with her mom, or visit the library, or catch a movie with friends.”

Solo performers at the Oct. 24 “Rock ‘n Roll for Ashley” include Gregg Albertson and Shannon Vanderlaan, who will open the event. They will be followed by several local bands including Delano Steele and Atomic Swamis.

Food will be available for purchase at the event. Tickets are $5 and can be purchased at the door or by calling (585) 944-0678.

There is also an on-line fund-raising page for Ashley at CrowdRise. Click here for more information.

Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Amber Lowery, an Albion 8th-grader, holds a pillow she made for recovering breast cancer patients.

Amber and other students in Mrs. Kim Toombs’ Family and Consumer Sciences class have been making pillows and ponchos for breast cancer patients.

Toombs was diagnosed with breast cancer in July 2014. After surgery, she completed chemotherapy and radiation in January 2015.

Kim Toombs gets the thread lined up so student Julie Porter can sew a poncho for a breast cancer patient.

The class will deliver the ponchos and pillows later this month when they take a field trip to the Pluta Cancer Center through Strong Memorial Hospital, the Breast Cancer Coalition of Rochester, and Highland Hospital.

Toombs said she received help through all three organizations.

“I didn’t know there was a need until I went through it myself,” Toombs said about the pillows and ponchos.

Ella Knaak shows one of the ponchos she made in class. The students are making 70 ponchos, 50 medium-size pillows and 50 small pillows to be given to breast cancer patients.

Angel Rushing, front, Deyonci Farley and other eighth-graders work on the ponchos during class today.

Toombs wears a sticker noting she is a breast cancer survivor.

She thanked her students for working so hard on the project in class.

“They are doing a great with them,” she said.

Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Members of the Albion Police Department are wearing pink pins with silver angel wings on their uniforms this month in honor of Breast cancer Awareness Month.

“Breast cancer has in some way affected everyone in our community,” said Police Chief Roland Nenni. “The Albion Police Department hopes that by aiding in awareness we can help in a small way to find a cure.”

Pink ribbons are also being displayed on all police patrol vehicles.

“The more we can raise awareness as professionals and public servants, it may prompt women to be checked or someone to make a donation,” Nenni said.

Sgt. Gary Van Wycke, a member of the Albion PD for 21 ½ years, stands by a patrol car that has a pink ribbon on the door.