2011 Trip Report - Mountain Meadows Massacre Site
Mountain Meadows Massacre, Utah
May 14 -15 , 2011
By Ruth Harder
We’ve had so many calls and emails about what happened to Emmett I decided to try to give everyone a ‘Reader’s Digest’ version of what has transpired in the last couple of months.
Besides Emmett and me, our group consisted of Bob Jacoby, Malcolm & Jean Roode, Scott Roode, Glen Shaw, Mignon Slentz, Jim Proffitt, Danny Siler, Larry Boerio, John Henderson, and Steve & Debbie Marschke. We gathered early Saturday morning (May 14) in Leeds, Utah; where introductions were made all around and Emmett and Prof. Leo Lyman gave a presentation orienting us in what led up to the massacre, where we would go and what we would see.
At lunch break Emmett told me he was having severe abdominal pains and needed to go to emergency. Bob Jacoby was riding with us so he drove us to Dixie Regional Medical Center in St. George. They took him right in and over several hours did many scans, etc. but could not see the cause for his pain. Bob and I talked them into admitting him for observation. It was the middle of the night before Bob and I got to our rooms in Enterprise so we didn’t get much sleep.
Early the next morning I called and asked Leo if he would come lead the group. I called and talked to Emmett who said they were going to do more tests so Bob and I should stay and enjoy the trip. We had great weather and Leo is so knowledgeable about the Mountain Meadows and other points of interest that it made for a wonderful day.
We’ve had nothing but positive comments about the trip and about Leo. We can’t thank him enough for giving up his Sunday to continue the trip for Emmett. He is indeed a friend in time of need.
Larry Boerio was riding with us also so after the group went their separate ways the three of us headed to St. George where Jim Proffitt joined us for dinner. After dinner Bob and Larry left me at the hospital while they checked into their room in Leeds and did some sightseeing. I talked with the doctor and explained that the two young men (Yes, to us they are young men) doing the driving for us had to return home the next day. He agreed that the next morning, if Emmett thought he could make the trip, he would release him, which of course he did.
We arrived home in Devore about six o’clock Monday evening. It was not a pleasant trip for Emmett but with lots of Tylenol he made it. About midnight I had to call 911 and they transported him to St. Bernardine Hospital in San Bernardino where he was subsequently admitted. Again every imaginable test was done and still they didn’t show anything. Finally they decided it had to be the gallbladder and did the surgery Monday, May 22nd. The surgeon said the gallbladder had been dead for a long time and had become gangrenous. Finally he was able to come home; just a matter now of waiting for the incision to heal and to heal inside. Wrong! After a couple of weeks the drain was acting up; he wasn’t healing properly inside so they had to install a stent in the duct from the liver to the small intestine. After a few days they could remove the drain and that was a big relief. Three weeks later they went in and removed the stent.
Needless to say, we’ve had an exciting and very tiring couple of months. On the plus side; Emmett is now doing fine, free of pain and feeling better than he has felt in a couple of years. He is getting stronger and itching to get out in the hills.
I want to give special thanks to Bob Jacoby for all his help. I was in a period where I couldn’t drive so I really appreciate all he did. He and Larry are both excellent drivers and gave us a smooth trip home. Thank you both.
