Franklin:My Most Famous Friend

By Lynn Rice

[From the Foreword] In April, 1944, I had polio. I was taken to the Georgia Warm Springs Foundation in Warm Springs, Georgia, and received treatments there for eight months. I returned for four months in the summer/fall of 1947 for surgery. I have four wonderful grandchildren, Emily, Ellyn, Alexei, and AnnaClaire. I want them to know what happened to their Nana when she was a child. I also hope my story might encourage others with disabilities. I was inspired by knowing that my friend, President Franklin Roosevelt, went through much more difficult times with polio than I did, and he never gave up. I met my friend Franklin when he came to Warm Springs for Thanksgiving in November, 1944. It would be his last Warm Springs Founders Day Banquet. He shook hands with everyone, down to the smallest of us. What a thrill that was. I'll never forget it. President Roosevelt had reason to be discouraged. He almost gave up in the early years of his life with polio. An acquaintance told Mr. Roosevelt about a place in Georgia where there were warm mineral waters that seemed to have healing effects. Roosevelt decided to see for himself and went to Warm Springs. I'm so glad he did. He bought a large tract of land and founded Georgia Warm Springs Foundation for treatment of polio victims. Because of him, many thousands of us had a very special place to go for the best treatments and rehabilitation. The treatment center is now called the Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation. When the Salk vaccine was developed in 1954, polio was virtually eradicated. Warm Springs now treats all kinds of disabilities. President Roosevelt would be pleased to know that this wonderful place is still working its miracles.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1469998386
• ISBN13: 9781469998381
• Release Date: January 2012
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Weight: 0.46 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.2" x 6.0" x 9.0"