Polio Survivor Motivates Others Through Writing and Song
For Immediate Release
OMAHA, Neb. – September 1, 2026. Author, motivational speaker and polio survivor, Dianne McTaggart Wall will present to the Nebraska Polio Survivor Association September 13, from 2-4 p.m., via Zoom and the virtual event is open to the public.
In her presentation, "Music Therapy, Miracles and Me" and "Music Therapy and Post-Polio Syndrome,” McTaggart Wall incorporates her own life experience being born with polio and now living with PPS. To register for the event, go to the Nebraska Polio Survivors events page. A professional recording artist, music therapist and educator she shared her experiences living with disabilities in her book, Somebody Told Me I Could, A Polio Survivor Who’s in it for the Long Haul (Read and excerpt).
“The whole point of my book was to show people that you have to live life your way,” McTaggart Wall said. “Polio survivors know we can’t always do something the way the book says to do it, yet miraculously we do it. We are definitely the kings and queens of adaptation.”
McTaggart Wall was born with polio in 1953, after her mother had contracted the virus. Her mother would have gotten the vaccine to protect herself and her daughter, but it was still in the testing phase at that time.
“Parents today have that choice – a choice my mother did not have,” she said. “Many people today, including some in the medical field, don’t know what polio and PPS are."
In 2000, McTaggart Wall released an inspirational CD, “Touched by the Light,” which includes one of her own compositions, "Mary's Song.” In her motivational speaking, she discusses how music therapy, “along with her faith” gave her the strength and direction she has depended on throughout her life. In sharing her “can do” attitude with others, she said her goal is to inspire others to set out to make a difference.
“Sing your own song, even if you’ve been told you can’t sing,” McTaggart Wall said.
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NPSA was founded in 1984 by Nancy Baldwin Carter, a polio survivor and author. The organization was the first of its kind in the nation. Its goal is to help survivors and their families, as well as members of the medical community, understand post-polio syndrome and treatments. The mission is to educate the public and the health care community concerning polio and post-polio syndrome and to respond to the needs of individuals who suffer from the syndrome through group meetings, educational programming and newsletters, financial and other support of research concerning the syndrome and the circulation of research results. www.nebraskapoliosurvivors.com
Contact: Melodae Horst, Executive Director
Nebraska.Polio.Survivors@Outlook.com
Cell: 402.216.6041