Dates

• Existence: 1945 - 2019

Biography

Judy Herron Hoit was born July 7, 1945 on a farm south of Coon Rapids, Iowa. Shortly after her fourth birthday she contracted infantile paralysis (polio). In 1952 she received six months of treatment at a polio facility built by Franklin Delano Roosevelt in Warm Springs, Georgia. During this period she had surgery to straighten her knees and feet. Hoit spent most of the next six years at Warm Springs, returning to her home when she was thirteen. She graduated from Guthrie Center High School in 1964. In 1964 she married Arnold Hoit and from this marriage had two sons. Following her divorce in 1977 Hoit and her sons moved to Iowa City where she worked as a receptionist and typist. Though many people suggested she request disability status, she resisted the idea. Hoit authored several articles explaining disability access and disability awareness.

Judy Hoit won the Handicapped Woman of Iowa Pageant in 1991, which led to many speaking engagements for her throughout the state. She created a consulting business which addresses the accessibility and awareness issues for persons with disabilities. In 1996 Hoit was named Ms. Wheelchair Iowa. She was state coordinator for Ms. Wheelchair Iowa in 1997 and 1998. Hoit died January 20, 2019.

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