A Bit of a Mystery

-
This past week while we were in Washington DC we went to Arlington Cemetery. We went to see the things that everyone else sees: The Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers and the graves of Robert and John F. Kennedy and Jackie Kennedy Onassis, but we also went to view the grave of James Lee Ferrell.
Who is he, you ask?
He is a soldier who died in Vietnam in 1969 and he was a friend of my mothers.
When we found his grave, we discovered that his tombstone was missing. There was only a small broken off stone in the ground at the site where the tombstone should be. The tombstone of the soldier next to him was also missing. The front office was surprised to hear this news. The clerk asked if I was his next of kin, and I told them I didn't know if he had any living relatives and so they let me fill out a report.
The reason I don't know if he has any relatives is because my Mom was given the flag from his coffin. I'm really not sure what my Mom's relationship was with him. I have pictures Jim sent to my Mom from Vietnam, as well as a copy of the memorial from his funeral, and the flag from his coffin. I have started to investigate. I hope I can find his family and see if they would like his flag as well as the pictures. Here are a few pictures of Jim in Vietnam
just a few months before he died on November 10, 1969.

This last picture is very odd as on the back it says "July 1986 Wuneler Beach Vietnam"

I'm thinking someone messed up writing down the date correctly. But it's a bit of a mystery.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Gelli Plate Tutorial with Leaves

-
Image
Here's the Gelli Plate Tutorial you asked for! My Gelli plate has been well used and well loved. 1. Place Gelli Plate on a flat, covered working surface, and place small dots of paint onto the plate.  My demo photos are with me using acrylics and paper but it works exactly the same with fabric paint and fabric.  I like using Jacquard Textile paint when I make fabric prints. 2. Use a brayer to spread the paint evenly across the plate. 3.  I used the leaves as a resist for the first print. 4. Place the paper/fabric on top of the printing plate and smooth it out nicely to get an even print. 5.  Carefully lift up the paper/fabric. Found a photo from when I printed the fabric - see same process. This is a first print. 5.  I know that MONOprinting means ONE print but seriously, when you remove the leaves from the plate there are these beautifully textured leaves left on the plate just dying to be printed.  I couldn't ignore them!  So this is wher
Read more

Quilt National

-
Image
My husband and I took a red-eye flight to Columbus, Ohio, and then drove the one hour to Athens, Ohio, to attend the opening of the Quilt National quilt show where my piece, Wild Flowers was being shown. Made a stop at Tim Horton's, a Canadian chain for some delicious breakfast sandwiches and donut holes. We went to the Kennedy Art Museum, on the Ohio University campus. This is the side of the building. Photo of the front of the building from the cleveland.com website. The building was designed in the 1860s by Cleveland architect Levi Scofield, and was originally part of the Athen's Lunatic Asylum. It opened in 1996 as the Kennedy Museum of Art. There were some lovely prints, paintings and exhibits. It didn't take long to tour, which was good for my knees. I was glad to be able to see this Elizabeth Catlett print. I admire her work. I've seen some of her her other prints in person, and was anxious to also see this one. Friday evening, the Quilt National show opened, and
Read more

Giveaway Day!

-
Image
It's Giveaway Day over on Sew Mama Sew.   I love entering all the giveaways and seeing what is out there.  I also LOVE giving stuff away.  This year I am going to giveaway a copy of Quilt Scene magazine and a piece of my ice dyed fabric! Lots and lots of gorgeous quilts and great projects to make inside this magazine, including my article for the quilt "Unexpected Treasure" and a notebook cover called "Renegade Chevron." Sadly I don't have any jelly rolls to giveaway so you could make my quilt but I thought you might enjoy a fat quarter of my ice dyed fabric. Lots of beautiful colors mixed together ready for appliqué, piecing or it could be used as is. Now I'm sure you are wondering what to do to win these fabulous prizes! Just leave a comment for me telling me what your favorite holiday treat is. I know it's not quilt related but I really want to know! I LOVE TREATS. The giveaway will be left open until Midnight Pacific Stand
Read more