My Uncle Bill Hartley - "Miracle Bill"

This is a true story about my uncle Bill Hartley written by his brother (my father), Jim Hartley. At a very young age, Bill was at great risk of going completely blind. It was a great challenge for him and his parents (my grandparents). Below are my father's words:

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The Europa

On August 6, 2001, William (“Bill”) G. Hartley boarded a ship for a 59-day adventure of a lifetime. It wasn’t just any ship. It was the Europa, a Dutch-registered “tall ship” that was 184 feet long with three masts and 30 sails. 

The ship was part of a fleet of eight majestic sailing ships that were part of Sea Trek 2001, a privately organized commemoration of 19^th century Mormon immigration to the United States by sail from the British Isles, Scandinavia, and Western Europe.

The first 17 days of their adventure involved all eight tall ships and seven European ports in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Germany, and England. The second stage of the adventure included the Europa and two other vessels, which sailed across the Atlantic Ocean by trade winds from Portsmouth, England to New York Harbor.

The Europa carried 48 passengers, 22 of whom were there because of the commemoration. Sea Trek appointed Bill as the ship’s historian and company president, who was responsible for the 21 other volunteer Sea Trek “crew trainees.” Although they were trainees, they became vital members of the ship’s working crew.

From Landlubbers to Skilled Sailors of the High Seas

For nearly six weeks on the open seas, that soft-skinned crew of Sea Trek landlubbers climbed the Europa’s riggings, furled and unfurled her sails, repositioned the yards (the cross arms on a mast to which the sails are attached), steered the ship, maintained watch, and kept her sea-worthy with regular varnishing, sanding, painting, and cleaning. By the end of their trans-Atlantic journey the trainees were experienced, skilled sailors . . . who had lost a lot of weight and were mighty glad to be back on land!

Bill recalled what it was like to be in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by nothing but the sea and the heavens:

Ours was a tiny ship in a vast ocean, with a 180-degree sky in daytime and that same sky blackened at night, but bejeweled by thousands of brilliant stars. Day and night, God’s grandeur seemed overwhelming.

The fact that Bill could even see “God’s grandeurs” is a miracle. Fifty-nine years earlier, he nearly lost his sight to glaucoma.

Glaucoma

On February 10, 1942, Billy was born to Charles A. and Norma M. Hartley in Salt Lake City, Utah, their third child. He appeared to be a healthy, normal baby. When he was about two months old, his mother spent 14 days in the hospital battling an appendicitis that was so bad gangrene had set in. Soon after returning home, she and her husband noticed that something didn’t look right about little Billy’s eyes—they were discolored and filming over.

Their family doctor referred them to an eye specialist, Dr. Palmer, who diagnosed “infantile glaucoma.” Certain fluids inside the eyes of newborns are supposed to drain out, but they didn’t in Billy’s case. The increasing pressure of those fluids was damaging the optic nerve in both eyes. Without immediate surgery, Billy would soon be completely blind. But, the technology and procedures known to that eye specialist might, at best, have saved Billy’s eyesight for perhaps three to six years before he would go blind. There was no optimism.

Before authorizing the surgery, Billy’s parents sought a second opinion from another eye specialist, Dr. Near. That doctor diagnosed the same problem, but, providentially the night before, he had read in a medical journal of a successful new surgery being performed by only one person in the world, Dr. Otto Barkan in San Francisco. The doctor strongly urged Charlie and Norma not to let anyone operate on Billy’s eyes unless it was Dr. Barkan. A third eye specialist was consulted, who confirmed the diagnosis and advice of the second. Arrangements were quickly made to see Dr. Barkan.

Prayers and a Priesthood Blessing

Norma, a devout Mormon, asked elders from her church, Bishop Carperwitz and Brother Glade, to give Billy a blessing. Charlie, a non-practicing Catholic, didn’t subscribe to such things, but he also didn’t object. The two Mormon elders anointed Billy with sacred consecrated oil and—against all common sense—promised him that he would not lose his sight. Norma’s Mormon ward members held a special fast for Billy. His name was also placed in the Salt Lake Temple so that the faith and prayers of temple attendees could be offered in his behalf.

A Miraculous Operation

The next day, Charlie and Norma were on a train to San Francisco—despite the fact that Norma had not fully recovered from her appendicitis. Within two days, Billy underwent the pioneering procedures. During the night before Billy’s surgery, while Norma knelt in prayer pleading for her baby’s sight, she had the most peaceful feeling come over her that all would be well. After three operations, Dr. Barkan was able to completely save Billy’s left eye, but he could not reverse the damage that had already occurred in the right eye. The right eye had perhaps 10% vision.

The timing of the discovery of Billy’s glaucoma was critical. A day or two earlier, and the second specialist in Salt Lake City would not yet have known about Dr. Barkan. The first specialist would have likely operated on Billy’s eyes, with irreversible temporary benefit. Billy would have gone completely blind. If the discovery had been a day or two later, it might have been too late for Dr. Barkan to save the vision in Billy’s left eye. The right eye was already too badly damaged.

The post-operation treatment for Billy’s eyes included nearly three years of followup. Initially, Billy was prevented from rubbing his eyes by putting small socks over his hands and pinning them to the bed. For the first several days, prescription eye drops had to be placed in his eyes every few hours round the clock. During the first year, follow-up evaluations required monthly trips from Salt Lake City to San Francisco. Charlie’s employer, the Southern Pacific Railroad, showed amazing compassion and transferred him to Salinas, California, about 100 miles south of San Francisco, which made getting to and from Dr. Barkan’s office much easier.

When Billy was 5-years old, he had his final check-up with Dr. Barkan. After a number of tests, the doctor told Norma, “Your baby is alright. He is not going to be blind.” “Oh, Dr. Barkan,” exclaimed a grateful and tearful mother, “thank you! I thank you so much for saving my baby’s eyes.” He replied, “I rejoice with every parent that I can say that I’ve saved their eyes. But I want you to know that a hand greater than mine guided me with this little boy.”

Paying the Medical Costs

The costs of the surgery and follow-up were approximately $2,000, an enormous financial burden on a young family of five during war-time. In 1942, the railroad provided medical insurance for its employees, but not for their family members. So, Charlie found it necessary to borrow money from a bank and take out a loan against his life insurance policy in order to pay the hospital. Charlie didn’t have the money to pay the doctor’s fees. So, they entered a gentleman’s agreement: Charlie would pay something each month to the doctor, even if it was a small amount, until the fees were paid off, no matter how long it took.

While in Salinas, California, Charlie took on two part-time jobs in addition to his full-time, 44-hour per week employment so that he could make the payments on the loans and to the doctor. One job was during the evenings, eight hours a night, every other night at an ice plant moving 300-pound blocks of ice.

The other job was on Sundays and holidays. It was a second job with the railroad. At first, he helped lay and repair railroad track. Later, he was shifted to keeping their paycheck records.

Charlie did the extra jobs for about 15 months.

He was later transferred by the railroad back to Salt Lake City and then to Butte, Montana. It took a number of years to fully pay off Billy’s medical costs, but Charlie did it and met all his commitments. In the end, it turned out to be an amazing investment.

Legally blind in one eye, but with full vision in the other, Bill grew up to be an internationally recognized scholar, researcher, and writer. In fact, he became one of the world’s leading authorities on Mormon history and western migration to the Great Salt Lake Valley.

And, with one good eye, Bill helped steer a majestic tall ship across the Atlantic Ocean, climbed the ship’s riggings, swabbed the deck, stood watch, and provided leadership for nearly two dozen volunteer “crew trainees.” If the crew would have known that he was blind in one eye, they might have dubbed him a pirate and asked him to wear an eye patch to look the part. In reality, even with only one good eye, “Miracle Bill” was more like the wise old sea captain who has seen—and experienced—more of the grandeurs and blessings of God than most people could ever dream of.

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Written by James E. Hartley. Adapted from autobiographical oral histories of Charles Alton Hartley, Jr. and Norma Miner Hartley, interviewed and recorded by their son, William G. Hartley, along with input from the writings and musings of “Miracle Bill” himself. Bill reviewed and approved this account.

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Photo Acknowledgements

• http://www.ldschurchnewsarchive.com/media/photos/2001/5023.jpg
• https://www.sailonboard.com/vessel/europa/
• http://www.sailingshipadventures.com/index.cfm?event=GetVesselDetails&VesselID=80
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europa_(ship)#/media/File:SV_Europa_barque_2007-07.jpg
• https://unionice.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/1942.jpg
• http://l7.alamy.com/zooms/40fd3e022ccf4a4dbe7cdfbe363dd3b3/high-angle-view-of-men-working-on-railroad-tracks-jwantm.jpg


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