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Saturday, May 06, 2006
Bake Sale for Body Armor Experiences, Day Two
Well, the totals aren't in yet, but it looks like we might have earned around $4000 in our two days of sales.
A woman whose co-workers are mostly veterans told us stories about the people she works with - stories about what these people go through when they come back from the Middle East. Then she wrote Bake Sales for Body Armor a check for $300.
A man with a small child stopped to put the child down. I wasn't really paying attention to what he was doing, since he was a little distance from the table. He walked up to me and gave me some cash, then walked away. I looked at what was in my hand: five twenties.
We had food donations up the wazoo (as my father-in-law would say). We had tons of baked goods; a woman donated three patriotic pillows that she made; someone donated a couple of pizzas, because we might be hungry; a woman brought us Starbuck's yesterday and then packages of coffee today for us to send to the troops; a woman donated four copies of the book that she has written about support and services that are available to the troops; and the stories and connections once again gave me goose bumps, tears, and a reason to believe in people.
We met a man who is a member of Colorado Veterans for America. Nice, nice man. Watching Gaye and people like him and other veterans or families of veterans, I feel like I'm watching a big family. My closest connections to that family are through Gaye, my dad (a WWII vet), and my compassion for all beings. That is good, but it's not the same. When I watch them, I feel like I'm watching someone else's family reunion.
Through the entire 9 hours that we were selling, one man was negative. One person out of hundreds. And he was only mad, because we had copies of a January, 2006 New York Times article that tells about the need for side body armor and how the military is being slow to supply it. He hates the New York Times, because they are trying to ruin W.
And here go my thank you's again! Thank you, Applejack Liquor - I found their website! I LOVE their store; their employees are the nicest people, and their owner... I can't tell you what a wonderful, supportive person. Buy at Applejack!!! (We always do in this house!)
Thank you to everyone who baked, gave, bought, shared tears and laughs and supported Gaye.
These past two days were a miracle.
And I wonder... Do the soldiers know how much people - pro-war and anti-war - care about them? I hope so.
posted by Carol at 4:00 PM
2 Comments:
Carol. Thank You for all your wonderful work!!! I hope many people are finding your blog to read about your thoughts and experiences as you stand for justice and peace and humanity.
Actually we know that 20 persons lost their precious sons.
Thanks Jim!
And the numbers keep growing...
Reading this book, Hell Healing and Resistance, and listening to the stories of the family and friends of military people, I now realize that we don't lose our sons and daughters only because of death, but we lose a lot of them who are still alive. They come home with injuries that no doctor can fix and they are never the same. As much as my experience gave me hope because of the beauty of humankind, my heart is also broken from the stories of pain that I heard.
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