I contracted spinal meningitis in August 1966, about three weeks after graduating from college and starting work at Lockheed in Houston. My roommate and I had been to play miniature golf and were returning home on our motorcycles when I had a convulsion and wrecked the motorcycle. I also had a concussion from the wreck so the doctor didn't diagnose the meningitis for several hours. I was in a coma for three days and after the fever broke, my only injury was to my foot, which was badly scraped on the cement. I know that Mom had asked her sisters and others to pray for me and I don't think that I would not have survived if not for all the prayers.

Jon was living in Houston when we received a call on a Sunday morning that he had been on his motorcycle and had a seizure and was in the hospital with spinal meningitis. He also was in a coma and the doctors weren’t sure if he would live.

My brother James and I decided to go over there to see the family and check on Jon. We weren’t expecting to be able to see Jon, but felt that maybe we could talk to Ada and Joyce and try to encourage them. When it came time for visiting hours in ICU, they allowed us to see him. We had to put on a mask, gown and gloves to go in. I’ll never forget what we saw when we went in. His head was completely bandaged except for his mouth, nose and eyes and he was completely out of it, in a coma. I’m not sure how long he was in the hospital but we were so thankful that he lived and was able to get back to a normal life. A lot of prayers were prayed for him and when I see him now, I feel that I’m seeing one of the greatest miracles l have ever seen.

Many years ago I remember my mother Jessie Hilburn getting a phone call about her nephew Jon Barker being in the hospital with spinal meningitis. Mother became very upset and immediately went to her bedroom to intercede in prayer for Jon. Joyce Barker McCauley recalls that she was working at The First National Bank when she got the call about her brother Jon being so sick. She remembers being “scared to death” for Jon. She left work right then to go to Houston with their parents (Ada and Carl).

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