Marny Eulberg: Polio Survivor, Physician & Humanitarian
By Helen Urban
Marny Eulberg grew up in northeast South Dakota on a family farm. In 1950, at the age of four, she contracted polio. At the same time, one of her two younger siblings (a sister who was 14 months old) also contracted polio. They were both hospitalized the same day - Marny for six months and her sister for 6 weeks. There were few polio cases in their community that year, but in 1955 the number grew. Like some of the other Polio children at the time, Marny was a March of Dimes poster child.
Marny Eulberg (lower right) sits on a tricycle during her hospital stay for polio infection in 1950. She recovered, became a physician and ran one of the first dedicated PPS clinics in the US. Source: Undark Magazine
Marny’s mother suspected that her younger son had it at the same time, but he never developed any paralysis. At the time, the testing was inadequate to determine exposure to the virus. Her family was poor and their house had running water but no sewage system. This could possibly have been the source of the virus. Her parents had previously purchased a health insurance policy which covered “Eight Diseases”. Fortunately, Polio was one of them. The policy coverage was for 3 years or $10,000. It covered her six-month stay in the hospital and three of her surgeries. (She would have six surgeries before she entered high school). The March of Dimes also offered further financial assistance.
When she was released from the hospital, she was wearing one leg brace and using crutches. She was told that if she worked hard enough, she wouldn’t need the brace to walk anymore. By the time Marny entered junior high, she was free of the brace. Her pediatrician was a polio survivor and felt that wearing the brace did more psychological damage than there was value from the brace. She stopped wearing the brace until her late 30’s when the weakening in her muscles became so severe, she actually needed the brace once again.
As a result of having Polio, the sisters were each left with one leg shorter than the other. They were opposite legs - Marny’s was her left leg and her sister’s was her right leg. Their mother made their clothes for them and would customize their outfits for their shorter, thinner leg. Having learned to sew from their mother, the girls made clothes in 4-H and would customize them accordingly. Since this also affected their shoe size on one foot, they had difficulty buying shoes. Of course, they figured it out - they would buy 3 pairs of the same shoe in 3 different sizes. Once they mixed and matched them, they would each come away with one new pair of the correct fitting shoes!
With her awkwardness and limp, Marny experienced some bullying and felt left out - especially with sports. She was always the one left after the teams were picked on the playground. That was when she decided to put all of her efforts into academics and set her sights on becoming her high school class valedictorian. Unfortunately, it did not happen (she narrowly missed it) but her strong academic skills would pay off throughout her career. In addition to her academics, she learned to play the saxophone. Thanks to an amazing band director and her supportive parents, when she got to high school, Marny joined their award-winning high school marching band – playing while sitting down and in full band uniform! She was even able to travel with them and get to enjoy being part of the band.
From the time she was in 8th grade, Marny wanted to be a nurse. Her parents felt that her physical challenges would limit her in that line of work, so they introduced her to a local medical technologist (lab tech) to discuss career opportunities. It must have worked. Marny went on to attend South Dakota State University and graduated with a BS in Clinical Laboratory Technology. She spent three of those years on campus and one year in a hospital lab. Upon graduation, she worked for two years in a medical lab in Tucson, Arizona. Always grateful for thoughtful, caring parents, she wrote a letter to her mother acknowledging and thanking her for all that she had done for her through the earlier years of her life.
1974 Medical School Graduation. Photo Source: Marny Eulberg
In 1970, she was one of ten women admitted to the University of Arizona School of Medicine. The knowledge and experience she gained while working in the hospital lab was most helpful to her in her first year. In an effort to reduce her medical school expenses, she worked on weekends as a medical technologist at Tucson Medical Center.
A large one floor building, the lab was a one mile walk to the furthest patient's room. When necessary, Marny would get in her car and drive around to the other end of the medical center to make sure the patient was taken care of in a timely manner. She tried as best she could to fit in as a “normal” student. She was determined not to be treated differently or to let her handicap hold her back.
She served her residency in Family Medicine at Mercy Hospital in Denver where she was the only woman in the class. Her first surgery that she attended as a medical student was an eight-hour heart surgery. She stood through the procedure, without any breaks. She was determined not to be treated differently because of her disability, but in reality, she felt there was more prejudice towards her as the only female resident.
Upon completion of her residency in 1977, she served as a family physician in the small town of Hot Springs, South Dakota. As a small town doctor, she did everything from delivering babies (140 babies and 10 C Sections) to visiting patients in the hospital and taking care of the elderly.
In 1980, she moved back to Denver. In 1986 she was offered a full-time professorship at Mercy Medical Center (where she served her residency). She was excited about the challenge of teaching new residents and accepted the position – one she stayed with until her retirement in 2016. During her time at Mercy Medical Center, she opened the (1985) Mercy Post-Polio Clinic (later renamed the Mountain & Plains Post-Polio Clinic).
In 2014, she started seeing Polio patients in her own wheelchair accessible home. Prior to the pandemic, she was seeing 40 - 50 patients per year. Now only seeing 25 patients/year, she would love to see the number grow. Marny does not charge the patients, but will accept donations to Rotary, Colorado Post-Polio Organization and PHI.
The view from her mountain retreat. Photo Source: Marny Eulberg
She loves spending time at her cabin in the mountains. Until recently, she would snowshoe 0.3 miles once a month in the winter, using two different sized snow shoes and forearm crutches that were modified with a basket and a point on the end to be similar to cross-country ski poles.
A Rotarian, Dr. Eulberg is the District 5450 Polio Plus committee chairperson. From July 2023 through June 2026, she will be one of two End Polio Now Coordinators for Rotary’s Big West Zones 26 & 27.
Pictured here in 2019, Eulberg traveled to Zimbabwe as a delegate for her church. Source: Undark Magazine
Marny is also a volunteer with the Presbytery of Denver. Their organization has a relationship with the Presbytery of Zimbabwe. As part of their Mission Partnership Projects, they raise money to maintain a clinic there. This money pays for five staff members at the clinic. They also help support the drilling of wells where there are schools and support orphans by making sure they have enough food and can get to school. Marny was part of a delegate exchange and went to Zimbabwe for two weeks. While she couldn’t help at the clinic (due to government regulations) she was able to meet with the staff and bring them supplies. She receives updates and monthly reports from the clinic which helps with accessing any possible wants/needs they may have.
She has served on the Board of Post-Polio Health International since 2002. She serves on the Executive Committee as secretary and on their medical advisory committee.
Marny helps run a Post-Polio Camp/Retreat every other summer for 3 days at the Easter Seals Camp outside of Denver. Hosting about 40 people, and open to polio survivors all over the US, it is attended by the polio survivors from Colorado and across the nation.
Dr. Eulberg is a regular contributor to the monthly newsletter of the PA Polio Network (PPSN). Her full series of articles are featured under the title “Primary Care Perspective”. Her thoughtful contributions bring a joyful approach along with a special perspective as a polio survivor and a practicing primary care physician. She regularly answers questions from polio survivors and their families.
Marny may have retired, but she is far from finished with her volunteer and humanitarian efforts. She is proving day by day, that anything is possible, no matter what physical limitations you may have.