Family Story/Definition

Strong, Resilient Family

My Great Great Grandfather Samuel Watkinson was severely burned after a twin-engine bomber hit the 79th floor of the Empire State Building in New York in heavy fog and set it on fire on July 28, 1945. He was on the 82nd floor and thought he was experiencing an earthquake. He looked out of the window and saw the fiery bomber hanging on the side of the building. Then he felt the intense heat wave. The flames and dense smoke reached upward and obscured the top of the Empire State Building. He ran into an inside room and crouched down on the floor, covering his face with his hands. Firefighters found him in shock, and he was diagnosed with 3rd degree burns of both hands, 2nd degree burns of the face, and a burned larynx. He was in the hospital for three months and was discharged on October 13, 1945 to go home and continue his recovery. He went through a long period of skin grafts and compression dressings, with two full thickness grafts on his left hand to cover exposed tendons. He had to go through therapy to help with the motion of his fingers, which never became fully flexible.
Great Great Grandfather Samuel had exemplary human spirit and a positive attitude, and he was testament that a person can find the strength to get through hard times with a combination of hope, faith, resilience, patience, and the support of a strong, cooperative family. The family pulled together and remained strong and resilient to deal with this prolonged suffering. Great Great Grandfather Samuel Watkinson died on April 26, 1953 at 76 years of age, but his courageous spirit is still here to remind his descendants that our problems in life are not insurmountable, and his ordeal is a reminder of the importance of a strong, functional, supportive family.
Christine Watkinson