Noah's quilt block was made by volunteers of The Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) Awareness Quilt Project, Inc.  www.chdquilt.org  This organization creates quilt blocks free of charge for children and adults with CHD.  The blocks are then made into quilts that travel from place to place to raise awareness of Congenital Heart Defects.  Each quilt has 42 children and adults on it.  Please visit the quilt site.  Anyone can request to display a quilt at a function to raise awareness.  Each year the quilt project holds a  big quilt show and displays all of the quilts.  In 2003, we hosted the show in Noah's memory.  I serve on the Advisory Council, as a Liaison to heart families and as the Quilt Historian for the project.

 


Although I had heard of the CHD quilt before Noah's death, I had never taken the time to request a block. Several days after Noah's death, Gabrielle contacted me saying that my request for his block couldn't be found. I told her I hadn't made a request yet. We chose Elmo for Noah's block. Noah carried Elmo everywhere and would bite his eyes when he was teething. Elmo was with Noah in the PICU during his last days and now sits quietly in his crib. On particularly sad and lonely days I go in and give him a squeeze. Noah's quilt block is inscribed with the phrase "Asleep in Jesus" as we await the day when Jesus will come again and wake our little boy from his safe sleep so we can snuggle him once more.