The Agent Orange Quilt Of Tears serves as a Traveling Memorial that honors the many Veterans who have become ill or have died due to their exposure to Agent Orange during Vietnam.
If you have made it this far we ask you to please allow us a few moments of your time to seriously listen to some of our thoughts on the work we do with Veterans & their loved ones. We do this work from our heart & actual experience as a Vietnam Veteran/Agent Orange Victim & his wife. We feel that far too often the impact & worth of this display is not recognized & taken as seriously as it should be.
We feel that is very important to recognize some of the issues that we have tried to outline below:
* The Casualty Factor!
There are 58,249 names inscribed on The Vietnam War Memorial (The Wall). People look at the amount of names there on its sacred face & shudder at the vast amount of casualties there. Most are aware of these casualties. What they are not aware of is how many casualties that have fell to herbicide exposure. These casualties are directly related to their service during Vietnam. The accurate number of these casualties is almost impossible to record officially due to various reasons, but the estimated number has been at 250,000 for quite a few years. This casualty list grows every single day!
* Awareness! To Veterans Health Issues!
Many Veterans & their loved ones are simply unaware of these exposures and what effect the exposures can have on their health. This leaves them unaware of the increased importance of regular physicals complete with cat scans to detect the illnesses & cancers that these exposures can cause. As we all know in most any case of illness early detection & treatment are the best defense.
*History & Educational Factors!
The extensive use of herbicides during Vietnam is a valid part of history. There aren’t too many school books that explain Agent Orange or the Veterans plight concerning it. Most kids think Agent Orange was used as a form of chemical warfare & are amazed to learn that is was used to defoliate the jungle....they are even more amazed to learn that it was the U.S. that used it & not the "enemy forces". (I would like to emphasize that we do not get into a political discussion or stress any biased opinions that may go along with the subject...we simply tell the story!) The other part that most might not realize is that it isn't only the school kids that learn while seeing the Quilts...Many of the actual teachers never heard about this & are learning also!
*Helping the Veteran Find Helpful Resources! A Support Network!
*Agent Orange Victims & Widows Support Network
Like various other support groups it always seems to be beneficial to communicate helpful resource tips. Many Veterans & their family members do not know the first thing about resources available to them. (DAV, VFW, American Legion, VVA, etc.)
Many have no idea on how to get an appointment with a VA facility for a basic health registry exam. The VA system can be very intimidating to someone who doesn’t know how to get established.
*Memorials & Healing!
It’s a very well known fact that memorials help us in many ways. We utilize them in many ways to help us honor & recognize someone’s sacrifice and/or life. As humans we use them to help us heal emotionally & spiritually. None of our Veterans should be denied an individual form of recognition, honor, or remembrance for suffering due to exposure that was inflicted during their service in our military. To forget the Agent Orange Victims would be denying Veterans who served honorably.
The Quilt of Tears & A/O Victims & Widows Support Network is a non profit organization which mission is dependant solely upon contributions. It is our wish to keep The Agent Orange Quilt of Tears moving to various communities through out our country so that all people can learn about the tragedy of herbicide exposure & the health effects our Veterans are suffering & dying from.
We cannot do this alone! We need everyone’s help & commitment!
**** Sponsor & Booking Information ****
If you are interested in scheduling a display please contact us by telephone (863-422-7788) as soon as possible to see if the dates are available. We try to have the schedule compiled by March 30th each year but many times we have dates left open in between.
If you have a specific date you might wish The Quilt of Tears Memorial displayed in your community, please book early!
The exhibit can be done in two different ways:
(Our sincere wishes are to be able to work with all communities, & event organizers that are interested in bringing The Quilt of Tears to your area. Many times communicating by telephone can be easier with details, idea’s, funding, etc.)
(1) A flat fee to display the exhibit
Or
(2) Letting the Snyder’s put out a donation container.
In addition, the host location is required to pay for the Snyder’s hotel accommodations, airfare & means of transportation during venue. If the venue is located close enough for travel by car, the host location will be responsible for covering transportation costs as documented by receipts.
(All Display & Expense Fee's Are Due On The Last Day Of Display)
**Due to last minute cancellation’s and the loss of other bookings that wanted the same dates,etc.***
There is a Non-Refundable deposit of $300.00 or receipt of purchased airline tickets
To secure your event on our schedule!
Please make all deposit checks out to:
Agent Orange Victims & Widows Support Network, Inc.
P.O. Box 90 Davenport, Florida 33836
(We cannot utilize checks made out to The Quilt Of Tears!)
*** Displaying The Quilts: ***
** Please See Tips & Ideas Farther Down **
It is necessary for the host location to provide adequate means to display the quilts. The Quilts must be displayed indoors, in a tent or covered area that is 30’x 40’ currently, there are 24 Quilts measuring 80 inches wide by 100 inches long with Velcro straps at the top for hanging. They can be hung back to back provided there is enough room to walk completely around. In addition to the pre-constructed racks, a ladder, two tables and two chairs are needed. Some form of lighting should be thought of if the display will be open after dark.
When we travel to your area driving our own vehicle we have our own rack system and equipment that we bring with us but obviously we cannot bring our own equipment when flying.
We do have a diagram with directions for constructing quilt racks if you would like or need help with a display rack concept. It uses 1½ inch schedule 40 PVC pipe.
The cost is fairly inexpensive and it is likely that the PVC pipe can be reused for other projects afterwards.
Please contact us if you would like these directions
& we will email, fax, or send it to you.
Please feel free to contact us at 863-422-7788 or by Fax 863-421-2333
or email at: Armrdangel@aol.com with any questions
~~Tips, Ideas, & Options for Displaying Quilts~~
** A covered or indoor setting is always best! **
(Tents work well as long as they are big enough!)
** Each Quilt Measures 80 in. by 100 in. **
(We do need a ladder to use!)
** Each Quilt is designed with 4 sets of Velcro pieces for hanging **
** The Quilts are one sided and can be hung back to back to display **
