Franklin Delano Roosevelt, an adult victim of polio, founded
the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis, which he later
renamed the March of Dimes Foundation, on January 3, 1938.
A predominantly childhood disease in the early 20th century,
polio wreaked havoc among American children every summer.
The virus, which affects the central nervous system, flourished
in contaminated food and water and was easily transmitted.
Those who survived the disease usually suffered from debilitating paralysis into their adult lives. In 1921, at the relatively advanced
age of 39, Roosevelt contracted polio and lost the use of his legs.
With the help of the media, his Secret Service and careful event
planning, Roosevelt managed to keep his disease out of the
public eye, yet his personal experience inspired in him an
empathy with the handicapped and prompted him to the found
the March of Dimes.
President Franklin Roosevelt (left) himself a victim of polio, meets with March of Dimes executive Basil O’Connor.
