Virtual Museum of Polio Survivors
Remembering the past. Honoring the survivors. Preserving the legacy.
The mind of a polio survivor
This is not about the disease. It is about what it leaves behind – in the mind, in identity, in life.
Begin your journey into the inner world of polio-survivors
Remembering the past. Honoring the survivors. Preserving the legacy.
What we are here for!
by Susan L. Schoenbeck, MSN, RN — Author of Polio Girl: It Only Takes One
We are here to carry memory forward — not as a footnote, but as a living story that still shapes lives today.
I first encountered polio at seven months old, taken from my father’s arms into an iron lung and a world of fear few now remember. That early encounter with disease, isolation, stigma, and survival became more than a personal journey — it became a call to care, teach, and understand.
This museum stands for shared history — documenting the fear, the courage, and the human faces behind a virus that touched millions. It stands for education — so that nurses, doctors, and caregivers learn not just the biology of poliomyelitis, but the lived experience of survivors. It stands for respect — for those whose bodies carry the long-term effects of polio, and whose stories challenge us to look beyond statistics.
From iron lungs to vaccines, from isolation wards to resilience — we are here to honor every step of that journey. Remembering the past fuels our commitment today: to protect others, to learn from history, and to acknowledge the voices that have not been lost to time.
METRICS
Estimated Figure
Wild polio cases worldwide (2023)
Polio vaccination reach
Reduction in polio cases since 1988
Countries where polio remains endemic
12 cases
2.5+ billion children immunized
> 99%
2 (Afghanistan & Pakistan)
Polio Survivors Stories
Who is Susan L. Schoenbeck?
recently I received an email from a woman living in Arizona writing me that her doctor friend recommended me to her to contact me. I was flattered of course that my blog had become at least famous enough that someone from over the ocean took an interest in my blog…
Kay´s Polio Story starts 1952
I contracted Polio at age 2 in 1952 and was never very athletic growing up but had a fairly normal life. I married at 21, gave birth to 3 beautiful healthy children and worked first as a cosmetologist then went in to school to become a medical lab tech.. I…
Why is no one talking to me?
Maybe the sun was shining, maybe the sky was covered with dark clouds. All I really know is that my little body was burning with a fever that did not want to let go of its grip, and my head was breaking apart. My legs do not want to carry…
Kia ora koutou – may you all be well!
My name is Karen Butterworth. I’m a Kiwi – not a small brown fruit or large wingless bird, but a fawny-pink New Zealander (I hate the words ‘white’ or ‘black’ applied to people). I’m a 4th generation Kiwi of the Pakeha variety; that is, lacking any Maori descent. I am…
Blog in development
this blog is being built step by step! Thank you for Visiting, please come back again. Thank you!
Polio survivors worldwide
Estimated:12–20 million
Estimated PPS prevalence in survivors
25–40%
Estimated polio survivors in the U.S.
~300,000
Phone
VISIT
Virtual Museum of Polio
post [at] postpolioreality [dot] com
Address
Berlin, Germany