The Inconsistent Mixer: The Mother's Day Project

Saturday, May 5, 2007

The Mother's Day Project

Anne at ThreadingWater is organizing the Mother's Day Project to remember, memorialize and honor the female Coalition members who have died in the Iraq War. I'll let her say it herself, since it is more eloquent than anything I can come up with:

As another Mother’s Day nears, I started wondering how many women soldiers have lost their lives in Iraq? How many mothers, wives, lovers? How many women who would have been mothers, wives, lovers, friends?

As of today, the answer to how many female soldiers have died in Iraq since the beginning of the war is 79. I know their names.
Here is my idea for The Mother’s Day Project. You know the sort of fiber-arts work I’ve been doing lately. I would like to make a tote bag and incorporate the names of these soldiers. I want to hand-stitch the names on muslin fabric, but I’d like to have many different hands contributing to the stitching.

Today in the mail I received my swatch of muslin fabric with a name. I want you all to know this name, and as I find out more information about this young woman (all those who are sent to war are both too young and too old) I will be posting it on my blog, as well as some progress photos.

Jaime L. Campbell
born: 1980
died: January 7, 2006

I will be embroidering over the iron-on transfer to put her name in thread, as well as some other handiwork on the fabric to contribute to the tote bag.

Here are some other things I have learned about Jaime L. Campbell:

She was the student body president at Ephrata High School in Washington, class of 1998
Jaime was the Washington State Rodeo Queen in 1998, showing superior horse-handling skills.
She joined the ROTC to help pay for college.
She attended Washington State University and earned her degree in Interior Design.
Jaime stayed with the National Guard after college to pursue an aviation career.
Jaime's husband Sam was also stationed in Iraq at the time of her death and her father had recently returned from duty there.
She was piloting a Blackhawk helicopter on January 7, 2006 when it crashed in a non-hostile situation.
She attended Washington State University and earned her degree in Sales.
Mr. Sam Campbell is her widower.