Burns Lake & District Hospital staff members (from left) Dr. Jack Matvenko, Vera Gowland, and Louise Holmes in one of the operating rooms in Burns Lake's third hospital. [1963]. Dr. Matvenko made a lasting impression on patient Lawrence Hallgren.
Lawrence’s Story
Workplace accidents weren’t uncommon in the Lakes District during the last century. Resident Lawrence Hallgren suffered an injury on the job in July 1959 and sought care at the Burns Lake hospital along what is now Highway 16. This is his story in his own words.
“I was employed at Pendleton Bay at a sawmill,” Lawrence wrote sixty years after the incident. “It was called S & S Sawmill, run by the name ‘Decker Lake Lumber.’
“It was shortly after 8 a.m. on a Monday. I was adjusting the guide on the large head saw. I was using a crescent wrench, and it slipped on the guide lock bolt. I heard the wrench go through the tin roof. I thought, ‘Oh, boy, the boss will be upset,’ then reached over to close the large steel lid. It was then I noticed most of two fingers on my left hand were missing.
“There was a bit of panic, as [there was] not much in those days of first aid. The boss, Lloyd Watt, and his brother, Ken, loaded us up in his VW Bug [Volkswagen Beetle]. We headed for town.
“About three miles up the road, the Department of Highways had a trench across the road and made it quite clear it would be 1.5 hours before we could cross. Well, Mr. Watt made it clear we had to get to the hospital.
“There were several lumber trucks waiting, some [on] both sides of the trench, so we drove up to the mound of dirt, and eight or 10 of those drivers just shoved that VW Bug with me and the driver in it across the trench. We were off to town again!
“We arrived at the old hospital [on Highway 16], and someone called for a doctor. Out came Dr. Jack Matvenko and his young lady assistant, Gail Porter. Matvenko was quite young then, maybe late ‘20s or early ‘30s.
“I had been holding my left arm up through all this, so when the doctor took one look, he rushed me in and took a sharp scissors and split my new Elvis Presley jacket open, and out came the blood, of course. Then, he chucked my jacket in the garbage can.
“He [Dr. Matvenko] then went on to fix my hand, which was beyond repair. He removed two fingers … and was quite successful.
“Now, I met Dr. Matvenko about five years ago in the SanBar coffee shop. He was quite pleased that I came [and] talked to him. He looked my hand over and said, ‘I sure did a damned good job.’
“I said, ‘Yes, but I’m still upset about my new leather jacket.’
“He jumped up and said, ‘Here, take mine.’
“We had a good laugh. I didn’t take his jacket.”
Workplace accidents weren’t uncommon in the Lakes District during the last century. Resident Lawrence Hallgren suffered an injury on the job in July 1959 and sought care at the Burns Lake hospital along what is now Highway 16. This is his story in his own words.
“I was employed at Pendleton Bay at a sawmill,” Lawrence wrote sixty years after the incident. “It was called S & S Sawmill, run by the name ‘Decker Lake Lumber.’
“It was shortly after 8 a.m. on a Monday. I was adjusting the guide on the large head saw. I was using a crescent wrench, and it slipped on the guide lock bolt. I heard the wrench go through the tin roof. I thought, ‘Oh, boy, the boss will be upset,’ then reached over to close the large steel lid. It was then I noticed most of two fingers on my left hand were missing.
“There was a bit of panic, as [there was] not much in those days of first aid. The boss, Lloyd Watt, and his brother, Ken, loaded us up in his VW Bug [Volkswagen Beetle]. We headed for town.
“About three miles up the road, the Department of Highways had a trench across the road and made it quite clear it would be 1.5 hours before we could cross. Well, Mr. Watt made it clear we had to get to the hospital.
“There were several lumber trucks waiting, some [on] both sides of the trench, so we drove up to the mound of dirt, and eight or 10 of those drivers just shoved that VW Bug with me and the driver in it across the trench. We were off to town again!
“We arrived at the old hospital [on Highway 16], and someone called for a doctor. Out came Dr. Jack Matvenko and his young lady assistant, Gail Porter. Matvenko was quite young then, maybe late ‘20s or early ‘30s.
“I had been holding my left arm up through all this, so when the doctor took one look, he rushed me in and took a sharp scissors and split my new Elvis Presley jacket open, and out came the blood, of course. Then, he chucked my jacket in the garbage can.
“He [Dr. Matvenko] then went on to fix my hand, which was beyond repair. He removed two fingers … and was quite successful.
“Now, I met Dr. Matvenko about five years ago in the SanBar coffee shop. He was quite pleased that I came [and] talked to him. He looked my hand over and said, ‘I sure did a damned good job.’
“I said, ‘Yes, but I’m still upset about my new leather jacket.’
“He jumped up and said, ‘Here, take mine.’
“We had a good laugh. I didn’t take his jacket.”
