It had been snowing for some time in London, Ontario. Nature’s white blanket had been pulled across the landscape once more and Eric Cameron thought it would be a good day to stay inside. It had not been long since doctors had diagnosed him as a victim of ALS — amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Most folk called it simply Lou Gehrig’s disease after the famous baseball player who died from it. In 1984, Eric had been given two years to live. Already he needed two canes to assist him as the motor nerve cells in his spinal cord began to succumb to the disease. He knew the prognosis. Five in every one hundred thousand have it. The cause is unknown. There is no cure. The disease is fatal.
But Eric knew something else. At the age of twelve, on a Sunday night in his home town in Scotland, he lay in bed thinking about his eternal destiny. Then, calling to his father, he spelled out, letter by letter, “I w-a-n-t t-o b-e s-a-v-e-d.” For almost forty years he had walked with the Lord since that night. When he could no longer walk, he would sit with the Lord, then lie down with Him. Whatever the doctors said his future would hold, he knew who was holding him.
Suddenly Eric’s attention was arrested by the sight of a neighbor woman whose car had become firmly lodged in a snow bank. Pulling himself up with the liberal use of his canes, he bundled himself against the cold and headed outdoors to help. If he propped himself against the bumper and used his upper body strength . . . There! The car broke free of the drift. There were more drifts, however, out to the road. Eric offered to plow the driveway as well.
Unknown to the two involved in this little winter drama, another neighbor was watching from his window. Stuart Underhill was deeply impressed by this simple act of Christian kindness, especially by someone with an obvious handicap.
There the story might have ended but for two factors. Stuart’s brother Marvin, a believer in the Straffordville assembly, had prayed for years for his brother’s conversion. And Helen, Eric’s wife, shortly thereafter visited the Underhills with some baked goods. When Stuart mentioned to her the impression it had made on him, Helen offered to bring Mr. Jim Boswell, a local evangelist, for a visit. The Underhills agreed.
After several visits by Mr. Boswell, the Underhills put their trust in the Saviour. Not long after, the Lord called Mrs. Underhill Home. Her husband is now in fellowship in a London, Ontario assembly.
Eric had manifested his love for the Lord in the bright days of his youth. He had moved to Canada with his parents after World War II. Settling in Hamilton, Ontario, he had joined his father in the orthodontic business, making orthopedic braces and other aids for handicapped people, particularly children. Eventually he expanded the business to London because of the children’s hospital there. His parents joined him in the early 1980’s where, he said, “I’ll look after you for the last part of your lives, as you looked after me for the first part of mine.” But it was not to be.
In those sunshine years Eric is remembered for his robust health, his radiant countenance, his rich baritone voice and his willingness to help. Then came the doctor’s report.
The medical journals describe the course of the disease. They leave no doubt as to its conclusion. The victims gradually lose strength and muscle control in their extremities. Soon they are unable to walk, then to stand. The weakness moves toward their upper body until their arms hang limply by their sides. In the final stages, the lungs no longer function and the victim dies from suffocation. Is God’s grace enough for that?
In 1986, Eric’s doctors estimated that he had less than six months to live. But God had more than six months’ work for him to do. Eric left for the land where redeemed souls walk and run and never tire on July 19, 1990.
Did the darkness of the advancing disease envelope Eric Cameron’s soul? Without exception the doctors and nurses who treated him passed comment on his courage, peace and happy attitude. The anger that they saw so frequently in other patients was completely absent in Eric. He was not slow to tell you his secret.
On one of his frequent hospital stays, a psychiatrist suffering from Parkinson’s became a close friend of Eric’s who shared the Gospel with him. The contact extended beyond the hospital through phone calls, letters and tapes. Recent letters indicate that the man has trusted the Saviour.
Another ALS sufferer was reached when Eric learned that the man, an M.D., was in need of a motorized wheelchair. Eric gave him the one he was no longer able to use himself. The doctor and his wife were frightened and in great distress. They came to visit the Camerons several times afterward. Eventually Eric sent him a tape with a Gospel message, saying he felt constrained to do it, though it might cause an end to their friendship. After listening to it, however, the man said he longed to “have what Eric had.” When his wife called to tell them of his passing, she said, “Tom was completely at peace and ready to go.”
A flood of tributes to Eric’s life and testimony have come to the family from fellow patients, medical personnel, neighbors and friends. His wife Helen adds: “He was granted the courage and ability to speak to so many that his life would never have touched if he had not been ill.”
There are many philosophies and religions that purport to tell you how to live. Only the Gospel can show you how to die. The simple stone that marks Eric Cameron’s grave has engraved on it his secret: “To you who believe He is precious.”