Martha Lillard Passes Away After Lifelong Battle with Polio
Martha Lillard, who was diagnosed with polio at the age of five, relied on an iron lung for most of her life. She passed away on June 26 in Oklahoma, at the age of 78. According to her sister, she was the last polio patient in the U.S. to use this machine.
“They told her she wouldn’t live past 20,” her sister Cindy McVey recalled. “But she had such spirit and determination to live her life fully.” McVey believes that Lillard’s death was influenced by long-haul COVID-19. The death certificate cites chronic pulmonary failure and post-polio syndrome as causes.
Lillard spent her nights in the iron lung, a machine that helped her breathe by creating pressure changes. During her childhood, she attended school for a couple of hours and received tutoring for the remainder of the day. She managed to participate in high school classes using a phone system that connected her to teachers and classmates.
Family road trips became possible with a specially-made trailer, and her father would often call ahead to verify that hotels could accommodate the iron lung. Remarkably, there was a period when she could even drive.
“For me, this was just normal life,” McVey shared, reflecting on their experiences.
Once a common and fearsome illness, polio predominantly affected children and caused widespread paralysis. The introduction of vaccines in 1955 dramatically reduced cases in the U.S., leading to the disease being declared eliminated by 1979.
As technology progressed, the internet became a valuable resource for Lillard. It not only kept her informed about various subjects but also connected her with her future husband. After the events of September 11, 2001, she sought to understand what had happened and engaged with a man from Egypt online for over two decades.
Lillard eventually married Baha Salh in February after he received a visa to come to Oklahoma. “They were truly soulmates,” said McVey, adding that Salh is deeply affected by her passing.
During the pandemic, Lillard contracted COVID-19 twice, costing her valuable lung capacity. The final years of her life were marked by increasing struggles to breathe, confining her to her home. In the last two years, she spent nearly all of her time in the iron lung, according to her sister.
McVey remembered Lillard as creative, noting her talents for writing poetry and songs. Lillard even crafted her own obituary, which includes her love for animals as a volunteer for the Humane Society and her passion for Beagles. She adjusted her obituary to highlight her battle with long-haul COVID-19, while McVey added the date of her death.
In her last years, the sisters searched for someone to repair the iron lung, which Lillard had used throughout her life. “But with her passing, that need is gone,” McVey said, unable to hold back tears.
