Dear Mary:

I cannot thank you enough for your kindness and caring. Your personal interest and caring concern for all of us is truly touching. I can't find the words to express my gratitude for your efforts on our behalf.
Everyone seems to truly care about one another. You have done a wonderful job of putting together a great bunch of people on your staff.

Fisher House should be called Fisher Home.

IT is truly a home away from home. I have never felt so welcome and comfortable away from my house. All the efforts to make it warm and welcoming are effective. From the library to the "fireplace" to the fully stocked kitchen, everything is just perfect.

Please also forward my thanks to all the caring people that cheerfully provide meals for the house. What a nice loving touch. It really moves you when you realize there are so very many people caring about you and your loved one.

Staying at Fisher House was an unforgettable experience and to show our appreciation, we will do our best to help the Fisher House network back home.

Sincerely,

Vivian, Ernest & Dorian Bozza

September 3, 2004

Dearest Fisher Family:

Words on paper can never express or capture my sincerest thanks to the Fisher House Organization for their outpouring of kindness. My stay at the Fisher House started 2 years ago when I was diagnosed with Cancer while stationed in the Middle East. I was living in my home town of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico when my unit was activated because of the war.

While in the Middle East I was treated for some discomfort in my throat and later sent to Ft. Bragg for further treatment.
After tests were done and a positive diagnosis was given I was stunned. I felt out of my element and was far from my wife and three daughters. I was given lodging at the Fisher House and was told my family could come and stay. They did! And since then our lives will never be the same.

Paula the Fisher House manager is an angel sent to us just for this most difficult time. Her love and warmth was felt by every member of my family. Our stay at the Fisher House made our situation so much easier to deal with. We felt at home and like a family again.

We could not have made it through this troublesome period in our lives without our faith in God and the embracing love of the Fisher House Family and Friends whom I am forever indebted to. The many sleepless nights in pain and discomfort were made easier when I would look to the side and see my daughters and my wife. Thank you for giving soldiers like me and our families a place that genuinely feels like home.

Forever Grateful,
Specialist Fernando Rosado

Grandmother, Donna Canada, Son Cpt. Mark Canada and grandson,
Phillip Canada.

Though there are the heightened levels of activity on Army bases that are necessary during war, there are also heightened levels of care and support. One of the finest examples of this is the Army Fisher Houses.

Our family recently discovered this when my husband, Army Reserve Capt. Mark Canada, left for nine months for the Horn of Africa with the 412th Civil Affairs Battalion. He was injured seven months into the deployment and had to be flown home for surgery. Needless to say, there were many “unknowns” for us, particularly since he was being flown into Ft. Bragg, NC, and we live in St. Louis, MO.

The most immediate unknown for us after getting the call was where we would stay and how expensive it would be, should our stay be lenghty. This issue was taken care of almost immediately after Mark arrived at Womack Army Medical Center at Ft. Bragg. The staff of the Fisher House contacted Mark and offered our family a warm, inviting place to stay as long as we needed.

Paula Gallero, director of Ft. Bragg’s Fisher House, and her staff of service members working at Fisher House were gracious and extremely helpful to us, even arranging for a handicap-accessible room after Mark was released from the hospital. We were just a few short blocks from the medical center therefore follow-up care was convenient.

Seeing the effort, cooperation and help offered and given during our stay at Ft. Bragg has made such a lasting impression on our two teenage sons. For them to see compassion and respect no matter what rank, race or situation, is a pleasant and touching “side effect” we did not expect.

Naturally we are grateful that other Army families that have gone through similar experiences felt strongly anough to support future service members through Fisher Houses. We give thanks we could “come home” every evening after being at the hospital during the day. The relief of having one unknown element taken care of allows families to concentrate on the dozens of other unknowns that invariably crop up during a medical emergency.

Continuing this tradition is of utmost importance and we will always support the Army’s Fisher Houses and their staffs.

July 4, 2003
We arrived at Landstuhl Fisher house after two days of traveling from Colorado. What a beacon. Our daughter does not recognize us or give any sign she understands why or where she is. We only know she is alive and that’s enough for now.

July 8, 2003
We think our daughter has moments/times when she knows who we are. She laughs and cries at appropriate times but that is hard for her with a tube running down her throat. Looking at the sick and wounded walking, limping, wheeling and sitting everywhere my heart breaks. I try to say “hello” and look at them eye to eye and smile to everyone I pass. What courageous people I (we) have encountered here. I’m sure we will never forget this incredible place.

July 10, 2003
Time to move on to the next stage of this journey. Nina is doing better and will be at Walter Reed by the end of the day. Everyone involved in her case has been not only the “best” but they have been very helpful and genuinely concerned for her and her family. The Fisher House is a God send. The people we have met here are all in the same situation as us, and like us, still are concerned for others in this situation. It has made this ordeal much less of an ordeal than it could be. They will always be in our thoughts and prayers.
Chuck and Laurie Caputa