Posted on 02/17/2005 7:41:40 AM PST by SmithL
CONCORD - Late last month, Dee Scott, a registered nurse at Mt. Diablo Medical Center, walked the halls of the Landstuhl Medical Center in Germany, where many American soldiers injured in the Iraqi war are recuperating.
She clutched piles of red, white and blue quilts, painstakingly hand-crafted here in the East Bay.
One by one, she handed them to men in hospital beds, some critically injured, some with broken bones. The gifts, 73 of them, were her way of thanking them for their wartime bravery.
"I'm fiercely patriotic," she said. "Having the opportunity to thank our troops in person was just amazing."
The men told her they were surprised someone would come all the way from California to deliver quilts. But these weren't just any quilts. They bore intricate patterns, always resembling the American flag, and were sewn by groups of quilters here. Scott, an Antioch resident, made many herself, as did the Delta Quilters and other area residents.
Most thanked Scott, and many said, "My wife's gonna love this," she said.
One of her most memorable deliveries was to a man who had just lost his leg in battle. The soldier's wife was there, and accepted the quilt on behalf of her husband. She was overwhelmed, Scott said.
"To see the quilts covering the men on their gurnies when they left was just so rewarding."
Patty Stockton, a fellow Mt. Diablo Medical Center nurse, went along with Scott to help with the deliveries. Together, the two women blanketed the hospital with the quilts.
They also volunteered as nurses while there, helping to unload the injured and make sure they had beds at the hospital. All in all, Scott said she was impressed with the care the troops were receiving.
The first thing she told her husband and two sons when she returned from the 11-day trip on Feb. 2 was, "I can't wait to go back."
She said she'd like to reach her original goal of getting 100 quilts delivered to the troops. But because of how difficult it was to get approval and permission to enter the hospital the first time, Scott said she doubts if she will make it back.
She will, however, be able to send the quilts. Right now, she's working on finding quilters to help her sew approximately 25 more.
"I will make my goal of 100 if I have to sew them myself," she said, laughing, yet at the same time, determined.
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