Part Four: Baby Davitt

Bill and I were born on the farm: He was fine, but I was sickly.

Kae asked, "When did you know that Patricia was sick?"

"Almost immediately, Mother knew there was something wrong." ...

Tom said, "You were one jump away from renal failure. It was a close call, and it was lucky it didn't happen earlier, or you would have been deader than a smelt!"

Molly added, "Kidney problems, born with it. Then a friend's daughter, living in Saskatoon, told Mother she should maybe bring Patricia to Saskatoon to this Dr. Brown, to try out this new treatment. He couldn't guarantee anything, but it was a chance."

"How old was the baby then?" asked Kae.

"Less than a year old; getting on for a year, I guess. So they took her in; left her there; came back [to the farm without her]. We had reports every day, remember? On the radio, from the general hospital in Saskatoon, reporting on all the babies that were in there, and the ones that were ready to pick up and take home. Baby Davitt: we were waiting to hear what they said about Baby Davitt!"

Added Tom, "They didn't have first names; just Baby! I remember that. On those farm programs, they had birthdays and everything from soup to nuts. There was quite a bit of coverage."

"It was a great service," Molly agreed.

In the time before rural electrification and telephones, the radio provided an vital communication link and a lifeline across the province and the country.