Veteran's Hope (2011 Nebraska Brain Injury Association Paper Crane Project)
My journey began when I was asked to work with the Brain Injury Association of Nebraska this year to create a piece of art using cranes to represent the 1,000 veterans that suffer from brain injuries. When I was first asked to create the piece, I was told what the term “brain injury” encompassed and realized that my grandfather who was a veteran of WWII fit this category. He had suffered from an aneurysm and lived at the VA Hospital in Lincoln, NE for many years and although I never had the opportunity to meet him, I felt as if in some way this project would give me opportunity to honor him and the sacrifice he gave for our country.
I was also interested in working with the BIAN because within the last 18 months I learned that a childhood friend of my family’s had an aneurysm and was left in a comatose state. I have been unable to find a way to uniquely contribute to his cause and I believe this will help me “give” to him in a special way. I was also reminded of the injury my husband’s aunt had sustained in a car accident many years ago which has left her with permanent short term memory difficulties. It wasn’t until I was approached with this project I that I even realized how much my own life had been affected by people with brain injuries. I hope that my art piece and the work this organization is doing will help people realize just how “close to home” an injury like this can be. I am honored to take part.
The piece I created is based on the Medal of Honor given to military personnel. I researched the various branches of the military looking for a common symbol to derive a sculpture piece from and found that the Medal of Honor was similarly looking for all areas. It is given to honor unique soldiers and I felt that this project called for the same, so I decided a large “medal” made of red, white, and blue cranes would serve as an excellent way to honor those who have sacrificed so much for our country and who battle with a brain injury each day. They are true heroes for us all.
My journey began when I was asked to work with the Brain Injury Association of Nebraska this year to create a piece of art using cranes to represent the 1,000 veterans that suffer from brain injuries. When I was first asked to create the piece, I was told what the term “brain injury” encompassed and realized that my grandfather who was a veteran of WWII fit this category. He had suffered from an aneurysm and lived at the VA Hospital in Lincoln, NE for many years and although I never had the opportunity to meet him, I felt as if in some way this project would give me opportunity to honor him and the sacrifice he gave for our country.
I was also interested in working with the BIAN because within the last 18 months I learned that a childhood friend of my family’s had an aneurysm and was left in a comatose state. I have been unable to find a way to uniquely contribute to his cause and I believe this will help me “give” to him in a special way. I was also reminded of the injury my husband’s aunt had sustained in a car accident many years ago which has left her with permanent short term memory difficulties. It wasn’t until I was approached with this project I that I even realized how much my own life had been affected by people with brain injuries. I hope that my art piece and the work this organization is doing will help people realize just how “close to home” an injury like this can be. I am honored to take part.
The piece I created is based on the Medal of Honor given to military personnel. I researched the various branches of the military looking for a common symbol to derive a sculpture piece from and found that the Medal of Honor was similarly looking for all areas. It is given to honor unique soldiers and I felt that this project called for the same, so I decided a large “medal” made of red, white, and blue cranes would serve as an excellent way to honor those who have sacrificed so much for our country and who battle with a brain injury each day. They are true heroes for us all.
