In The Beginning

Northern Advocate, 3 June 1947, Page 4

In The Beginning

Ancient Spartans cast malformed babies from cliffs.

In the Middle Ages, deformed children were ridiculed and abused—or, if lucky, grew up to become Court “fools” or jesters.

Only a generation ago, the deformed and disabled could expect nothing but callous neglect. It is with these comments that Mr E. W. Palmer, President of the National Society for Crippled Children in the United States, begins an Article in “The Crippled Child.”

The article goes on to state that the shift to today’s humanitarianism started in the little town of Elyria, Ohio, USA. There Edgar F. (Daddy) Allen launched the crippled children movement.

Two inter-urban cars had crashed, and his son, standing on a crowded rear platform, had his two feet shorn off at the ankles, and died for want of proper surgical attention. Daddy Allen sold his million dollar business, and in two weeks had raised £30.000 to build the first unit of a hospital in Elyria—the Gates Hospital for Crippled Children. It was opened in 1915. Daddy Allen proceeded, with the aid of Rotary Clubs, to organise the work, first in the United States, and then throughout the world. So successfully was it done that the late Paul P. Harris, Founder and Father of Rotary, once declared that “Crippled Children Societies were the most illustrious offspring of Rotary.” The National Society for Crippled Children and Adults in the United States is now 25 years old.

The late Mr T. C. List, of New Plymouth, when District Governor of Rotary in New Zealand, brought the idea to the Dominion vdien he returned from the 1933 Rotary Convention held at Boston, USA.

Thenceforward Rotary clubs in New Zealand have devoted themselves to the interests of the Crippled Children Society, which today is operating throughout the Dominion and obtaining, year by year, greater financial and moral aid from people who recognise the succour being given to stricken children and the fine results obtained therefrom. The benefits of the society have been made available to crippled children in Northland for several years past, but it is little more than two years since the work was taken in hand on a major scale, a supervisor being appointed to contact, and to keep in touch, with sufferers from crippling diseases. The cases, which are found in all parts of Northland, are reported to the Whangarei Sub-Centre of the Auckland branch of the New Zealand Crippled Children Society, and each is dealt with in accordance with its needs, which may be treatment by Auckland’s leading orthopedic surgeons, who give their services free to the society, admission to the Wilson Home, provision of artificial limbs, surgical boots, educational facilities, and so forth. A truly great work is being done in restoring crippled children to health and fitting them for life as useful citizens.

Daddy Allen built better than he knew when he launched a great humanitarian movement.