Kick off Quilt
The first quilt produced by Threading Hope was made for 11 year old burn victim, Nathaniel Ortiz Rodriguez of El Salvador. With the aid of several organizations and citizens, it was made possible to bring him to him to the states for medical treatment. In February of 2008 he traveled from his homeland to Grande Prairie, Texas to receive the necessary surgeries that will give him a much richer future. We worked with Airline Ambassadors International as volunteers to help with this project.
Nathaniel, more affectionately known as “Nata” became a burn victim at age 10. He was working at the bakery to bring in money for the family when the oven unexpectedly exploded, burning over 90% of his body. The burns were severe and causing the loss of most of his fingers.
With a ceremonial arrival and many events planned to remind him of the joys involved in childhood Nata was grinning constantly. Miss Florida 2007, Kylie Williams, also a burn victim, graciously presents him with his personalized quilt (Pictured above from the todaynewspapers.net, Cover page article and photo, Feb. 14, 2008). In response he and his grandmother made a thank you card for Danell Lynn and Kristina Green which stated in Nata’s words: “thank you for the beautiful quilt you made for me. I like my name on it and I like the airplanes. I will take it to the hospital. It will keep me warm. Thank you for caring and making my days special.” This is a lovely reminder of why Threading Hope is a rewarding program for the giver and the receiver, giving gifts that are practical keeping children warm for many years to come.
-Above photo: Today Grand Prairie Newpaper, Thursday, February 14 where Nathaniel is pictured on the front page receiving his quilt from Miss Florida with a wonderful article about his trip and events planned. (www.todaynewspapers.net)
