Today is Independence Day.  For many of us, Independence Day brings family’s together to cook out and watch the fireworks.  Many of us are pool side enjoying a splash in the water.  For the STICU family, it is different.  They are waiting for the news of their loved one to see if they will survive the tragic accident that brought them there. 

For the soldiers and civilian families that are brought to BAMC, STICU North becomes a room full of family members, clergy, and friends all waiting to hear the news of a loved one.  As more families gather for their loved one, the STICU family becomes larger.  When a new family arrives in the middle of the night, they are lost, freighted, tearful, and hopeful. 

It is the duty of other STICU family members to console, offer hope, give a hug and cry with these families.  It is also the duty of the STICU family to show the new families the ropes.  They give them a hug and fill them in on important information like:

• What window and where it is that their cell phone will work at
• Where the cafeteria is
• Where they can get coffee in the middle of the night
• They offer the Chaplin’s name and where the Chapel is
• For those that smoke, they show them the outdoor smoking room

At the end of the tour there is a hug.  This is not just any hug, this is a hug that comes from the heart and is felt through and through.  It is a hug that says, I have been where you are right now.  It also says, I am here when or if you need me.

There is one thing that all STICU families come to realize, regardless of why they are there, it is the miraculous doctors and nurses that serve our  military and civilians that end up at BAMC that are heroes.   It is their undying devotion to serve that gives our wounded soldiers and civilians the courage to move forward.  It is the strength they  pass to the STICU families that helps to encourage our wounded. 

So for today, Independence Day, let us salute and give thanks to the doctors and nurses who serve at BAMC.  For without them, the STICU families would not have that glimmer of hope they so desperately need.

I have a dream.  Anyone who has seen Mama Mia should remember one of the last songs to both the movie and the Broadway production.  Nonetheless, I have a dream takes on a whole new meaning with families that find themselves within the STICU Waiting Room at BAMC.  Whether they are in the STICU or the Burn Center Waiting Room, they have a dream.  It is the dream that their loved one will survive just one more day.

For information about how you can help the STICU families, please follow along for the month of July.  I will be sharing more ways you can show your support.