The Vietnam Memorial on the Mall in Washington D.C. knocks you out because the names are so very small and close together, and then you see the length of the wall, and gasp: "Oh, no....". The AIDS Memorial Quilt employs a different technique but with similar effect. This week we have been honored have three panels on public display: two in the library and one in the Norris Family Theater (pictured below with Steve Wilkins making an introduction):
Each 12 X 12-foot panel contains tributes to 8 victims of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. Each of these has been created by a loved one with great care, artistry and emotion. The effect is staggering.
In today's assembly, students took turns reading letters written by the creators of panels...letters conveying love for a lost child, sibling, partner, parent, or friend.
The small panel shown above (at right), written by a little boy, reads: "Every night mommy and I pray to you and Nanny. She says that both of you are my very special guardian angels, who look down on me and protect me. I am proud to bear your name and I know that you are part of me and one day we will meet. I love you, Garrett Thomas Sytsma"
