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Date published: 11/22/2009
BY BILL LOHMANN RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH RICHMOND --Open the door to Fisher House on any Wednesday morning and prepare to have your willpower brought to its knees.The sweet aromas of chocolate, cinnamon and who-knows-what-else grab your senses and drag you down the hall, around the corner and straight into the spacious kitchen. There, you will find several moms making all sorts of cookies, cakes and cobblers. "This house is a home away from home, so to have them come in and bake gives it that home atmosphere," said Wayne Walker, manager of Fisher House at McGuire Veterans Affairs Medical Center. "It's really nice." These moms in the kitchen aren't just any moms. They are Blue Star Mothers, Richmond-area moms whose children are in the military--some in harm's way at this very moment--who dust themselves in flour, sugar and baking powder on Wednesdays to do something kind for the families staying at Fisher House. Those families are there because their loved ones, wounded or ailing service members or veterans, are being treated at the medical center. Mallie Murray, who directs the kitchen volunteers, calls it a "baking ministry." "Only for the grace of God it could be one of us, and who knows, it may be before all of these wars are over," said Murray, whose son is a Marine. "So we just do what we can. We give not only food, but we do a lot of comforting of people. We do more than brownies." Rebecca Hickman, another kitchen volunteer and president of Blue Star Families of Richmond, said, "We want them to know Richmond cares." Fisher House, a sprawling, 16,000-square-foot home with 21 guest rooms that opened last year on the McGuire property, provides free lodging for the families. Typically, several dozen people, including children, live at Fisher House--from a few days to many months. They spend their days at the hospital with their loved ones, who may have lost limbs or suffered traumatic brain injuries or endured any number of other wounds. Fisher House is part of a series of such homes around the country operated by a private foundation.
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