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Testimonials I just wanted to send you all a quick note to thank you for the time you all take to make quilts. I work in the ICU at Bagram AirField. We see every critical patient and from here we fly out to Germany where they can get better care. These past few months have been very busy but winter is coming up soon and hopefully things will slow down. It gets very cold here so the Taliban seem to hunker down for the winter. God willing, they will. Once again, thank you from the bottom of my heart, your quilts means everything here. Pati Acosta ________________________________________________________________________________________________ I write this on Christmas Eve with tears in my eyes. I just returned from my daughter’s house & found a large box on my porch from TSgt Pati Acosta in Afghanistan , the Medic who sent us a note saying our quilts mean everything there. She sent a beautiful framed flag & plaque saying it was flown on a combat mission on Thanksgiving Day in honor of the Calif Team of Citizen SAM see atch pics. I am extremely touched that they took the time to do this, and honored to have the flag from a combat mission. Thought you might like to have the pics for our Newsletter I will definitely show it to our Quilt Guild & display it at the Quilt Show in Feb. Merry Christmas & Happy New Year, Arlene  ________________________________________________________________________________________________ I just wanted to send you all a quick note to thank you for the time you all take to make quilts. I work in the ICU at Bagram Air Field. We see every critical patient, and from here we fly our soldiers out to Germany where they can get better care. These past few months have been very busy but winter is coming up soon and hopefully things will slow down. It gets very cold here so the Taliban seem to hunker down for the winter . . . God willing they will. Once again thank you from the bottom of my heart, your quilts mean everything here. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Wow, I received the quilts today. There are real nice. I can tell a lot of time and heart went into the making of them. Since I work in the ER, out patients usually do not need a quilt, so I took them over to the ICU and ward where they will be used. Our plan is to give one to every wounded American soldier that comes through and is on their way out to Germany. Thank you to you and your group from Illinois. We are blessed to have people like you all supporting our troops over here. Take Care and God Bless. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ We have never met, but I saw your letter today in our intensive care unit. We received a few badly injured US soldiers late last night. One was in surgery for several hours, and is very critically injured. We are now sending him for further care back home, through a number of trips. I can't tell you more specifics, at the risk of violating his privacy, but I did want to share one aspect of his care. This morning, when I came around the units to see the new admissions, I noticed that he was covered from his feet, up to his chest, in a beautiful red/white/and blue quilt. There was a brief letter with your name and e-mail on the bottom. In the letter, you mentioned that you were concerned about wounded soldier's in the cold. In fact, though it is 117 degrees outside today, it is quite cool in the ICU, and seriously injured patients need to be kept warm. I am sure he was also warmed by the obvious care and affection you put into making that quilt. At the top of the quilt is now pinned his purple heart, given to him by the soldiers of his unit who gathered around his bed, and touched the quilt you made. I wanted you to be aware of this so that you could be proud of your work, in making a blanket that could never been put to a better use than the one it serves now, warming him in the aircraft home. Thank you and your family, God bless you all and God Bless America ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Dear Helmetliner, I am an Army physician in Iraq. Over the summer, I have seen more soldiers and Marines than I wish to count being evacuated for injuries sustained in combat. As they moved through the hospital, small quilts seemed to appear to cover them. The quilts; colorful, soft and fanciful, are a stark contrast to that which surrounds them. Everything else is coarse and dark and hard. All who see the quilts for the first time remark on the generosity and thoughtfulness of the people at home who went to all this trouble. I have seen them so many times now that I no longer comment on them but notice the nurses talk to the patients about them as they unfold them and place them on their bodies over their military blankets. The nurses discuss the patterns and colors to the soldiers. All too often, the soldiers are on a ventilator, heavily sedated and can't speak. I don't know what the people who made the quilts were expecting when they made the quilts and then shipped them, nor the strange turn of events that must occur to get the quilts to the hospital and then into the nurses' hands. However; I think this is exactly what the maker of the quilts would have hoped for most. I am absolutely convinced that watching a nurse explain the details of a quilt to a soldier wounded in action and whom is unable speak is receiving the highest award his nation can give under any circumstances. This gift is far more meaningful than any small piece of ribbon or shred of medal. It is truly the token of thanks of a grateful nation. Anyway, I need to get back to work. On behalf of those who received your gifts, thank you. They are being used on our shared national treasure, our soldiers. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ |
