It was 1955. I was a twenty-year-old kid in an Army uniform, on a flight from Denver to San Diego, on my way to my home-base, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. My assigned seat was next to an older gentleman, who introduced himself as “Jack” and immediately commented on my Army service and asked about my deployment. When I explained that my Division had just rotated from Korea to Hawaii, that started a longer conversation which lasted almost throughout the entire flight.
He talked about his service in the Canadian military during WW II, and the fact that he was a medical engineer of some kind. I shared that I was looking forward to returning to college upon my discharge, to study geophysical engineering. Throughout most of the flight we talked about all manner of things, most of which has now slipped right out of my mind. But something happened midway through our time together that I recall today.
A stewardess came by and asked him to step forward. He returned to his seat about fifteen minutes later smiling. As I recall he commented that “sometimes they just can’t wait to share news. That was my friend informing me that our patent had been approved. It’s a pretty big deal, and he had to wait for the decision, while I headed on to San Diego for a meeting.”
I know I asked about the patent, and he seemed to shrug off the question, then said it wasn’t that big a deal, just an improvement in a “gadget” (his word) his team had invented to pace the heart, especially during surgeries. I know I blurted out: “You mean a pacemaker?” That’s what they called it, he said.
I wish I could recall more of that conversation. I must have sat there stunned for a period of time. I had first heard the word “pacemaker” just the week before. I had been on leave, traveling with an army buddy back to his home in Switzerland. It was in his home town of Neuchatel, that I overheard a conversation about a device called a pacemaker, and how it was used. Now, here I sat with someone that seemed to have been a part of its development. I know I commented to him about the coincidence, and his only remark was, “Yes, I think it’s being put to good use.”
Years later, I had opportunity to research the invention of the pacemaker, only to find that in 1950, a team in Ottawa, Canada, is credited with the invention. That team was led by John Hopps, also known as “Jack”. Wow! You just never know.
For What It’s Worth.
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