Shriner Magazine Spring 2023

What should have been an hour-long drop-off turned into five hours trapped behind a jackknifed semi truck. In a city unaccus- tomed to this kind of storm, my fellow drivers found an inventive way to escape our entrapment – we each backed up onto the freeway going the wrong way. After Jeremy and I got out and pushed, the maneuver got us turned around and headed south on I-5, and able to continue our journey. We could now focus on the safe delivery of our son to the hospital, which we determined meant to drive safely. This approach was lost on a number of our fellow drivers, many of whom ended up in the ditch or colliding with bridge abutments, various immoveable objects or each other. With the snow coming down in near white-out conditions, we set the Nissan on a wimp mode of 25 mph. At that speed, we calculated, it would take us 10 hours – getting us to the hospital just in time to check in by 8 a.m. We stayed on course and out of the ditch all the way to Port- land, arriving less than an hour before check-in. Thankfully, the steep road up the hill to the hospital had been plowed and sanded – an extraordinary effort I like to think was just for us. After a dramatic arrival at the front entrance, Jeremy and my wife went inside while I attempted to pry my hands off the steering wheel. We dozed in the waiting room while the surgeon and his support staff worked their magic. The doctor emerged after several hours with a full report: The procedure had gone exactly as planned, and the results would be life-changing. We stayed in Portland for several days, until the doctors determined that Jeremy was well into his healing and recovery. The drive back was uneventful until we got off the ferry and started to see downed trees and power lines. It was a week before our power was restored and our son returned home. Decades later, the rewards of our ordeal remain. Shriners Chil- dren’s and my Shriner uncle blessed us beyond measure. With the help of additional procedures provided by the Navy, Jeremy’s childhood cleft is no more. Now 49, Jeremy is a happy, healthy and handsome man who works renovating houses and is still not crazy about hospitals.

Now 49, Jeremy is a happy, healthy and handsome man who works renovating

houses and is still not crazy about hospitals.

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