My Mother was almost world-famous. While she was working as a nurse at St Joseph’s Infirmary in Louisville, Kentucky, she had great compassion for the patients who spent many days bedfast during their recovery.
The pressure on their bodies from long hours in prone positions often created very uncomfortable bed sores.
Her idea to alleviate their distress led her to call upon her cousin’s husband to build a small electric handheld heated fan that a nurse could use to help dry out and relieve irritated areas.
After Frank Arnold built the device that she described, I drew the design of the model in order for the product to be submitted for a patent.
Times were hard in those days and I heard several discussions that determined money was needed for groceries leaving nothing left to apply for a patent. The electric handheld heated fan ended up on a hallway closet shelf and the idea in time was forgotten.
Years went by and someone else paid for a patent for an electric handheld heated fan-AKA a hair dryer.
Louise Kernen did not have to purchase a new hair dryer. All she had to do was reach up on that hallway closet shelf and pull down her own invention.