In the Race

Like President Kennedy’s assassination, the Challenger disaster, and of course we will never forget 9-11.  But there are other things that happen that touch different people in different ways.  Charles Manson, Kent State; well there are things on the upside, too…not everything was bad…Woodstock for instance.  But today and the next couple days to follow marks the anniversary of an event that, as a very young mother, just put chills through me.  I never would have thought there were such randomly evil people in our country back in 1982, but there were, and there were more to follow.

On September 29, 1982, a 12-year old girl named Mary Kellerman, who lived in Elk Grove Village, IL died.  Why?  She had taken an Extra Strength Capsule of Tylenol.  Later that day, in the hospital,  Adam Janus died .  He was from Arlington Heights.  Then, when his family was mourning Adam’s passing away, his brother Stanley and wife Theresa, who had Tylenol from the same bottle, also died.   They were from Lisle, IL.  Sometime later, there were several more incidents of death; Mary McFarland, of Elmhurst, Paula Prince, Chicago, and Mary Reiner, of Winfield.  The obvious link to Tylenol was found quickly, to the credit of investigators, and the public was warned immediately.

I was so disturbed that the family was distraught over the fact that their brother had died, and had taken the Tylenol, and then there were two more victims.  I distinctly remember other family members speaking about it on television.  About how much stress Stanley Janus was under and the headache he had.  It was very sad and painful.

And so, now it began.  We no longer could feel safe purchasing medications and food products in the store.  Safety protection on all products.  No more loose, time-released capsules.  Trust no one.  Life changed very much after September 29, 1982.  I guess there’s something about September.