Martha Lillard, 78, died quietly at home in Shawnee, Oklahoma, on July 10, 2026. She had polio as a child. The disease left her needing a large metal breathing machine called an iron lung. She used the machine for more than 60 years. Doctors later verified her death. No one in the US still depends on such respirators today. The iron lung, once widely used, is now a few remaining in the United States. Her story stands as a reminder of the challenges faced by polio survivors. She lived through many years of change in respiratory care. She remained in the care of loving family members. Her courage inspired local medical historians. The community remembered her with a quiet gathering. Her life spanned the era from the polio crisis to modern vaccine breakthroughs. She outlived numerous of her contemporaries. The iron lung that sustained her has become a museum piece.