A token of remembrance moves to a new home at Tower Place
The very nature of many quilts is commemoration. It’s fitting that the staff at Lehigh Valley Hospital (LVH)–Muhlenberg Breast Health Services created a pink ribbon quilt years ago to recognize and honor those who had been treated there. Jean Hoderman, a lifelong resident of Catasauqua, was a survivor of breast cancer. She was treated at LVH–Muhlenberg almost 24 years ago. And Hoderman proudly signed the quilt.
Early American settlers could not afford to throw things out when they wore out. So, when blankets became worn, they were patched with other blankets. They were also used as filler between blankets. That was the beginning of the quilt: They were functional, used to keep people warm, not as decoration.
“By sharing my mother’s story – and by displaying the quilt – LVHN gives hope and inspiration to all those facing this journey.” - Jackie Hill
Hoderman’s daughter, Jacqueline (Jackie) Hill, remembers her mom as someone who grew up with little means but always gave back to others because of her upbringing. Hoderman did the most with what she and her family had. Born in 1929, the youngest of 13 children, she grew up on a small farm. Her family raised chickens, and along with a vegetable garden and fruit trees, managed to feed their large family. Hoderman wore hand-me-down clothes that were patched, not thrown away when they wore out, just like the early quilts.
“My mom valued relationships with people more than things,” Hill says. “I have wonderful memories of her – she was also a good friend to many. She lived a good life and set the foundation for my life.”
Getting a yearly mammogram was one of the things the women did together as a bonding experience between mother and daughter. It was also a commemoration for Hoderman’s sister, who passed away from breast cancer at an early age. The mother-daughter mammogram appointments were a pleasant breast-health trip until one day when Hoderman’s results came back positive.
“It was an awakening,” Hill says. “You always expect that everything will be fine when you go for your mammogram. My mother rolled up her sleeves and handled it well. It was during her treatment she signed her name on the quilt next to a pink breast cancer ribbon.”
Luckily, Hoderman’s breast cancer was caught early. She was treated with radiation and a lumpectomy and lived for 19 years after her breast cancer diagnosis. Sometime in her 80s, she stopped being able to have mammograms because of skin sensitivity. However, she made her feelings known to her daughter.
“My mother said, ‘Jackie, please promise me you’ll continue to get your mammograms without me,’” Hill says, noting that she hasn’t missed a year.
When Hill learned Breast Health Services in Bethlehem was moving to Women’s Health Center at Tower Place, at the former location of Bethlehem Steel’s Martin Tower, she wondered about the pink ribbon quilt. She went to the practice and asked whether the quilt was moving too. She was told it was. She says she’s glad because it brings back beautiful memories of her mother. “Through her words and deeds, I’m reminded of her love,” Hill says.
“By sharing my mother’s story – and by displaying the quilt – LVHN gives hope and inspiration to all those facing this journey. With my annual mammograms I continue to remember her courage and honor all those that walk this same path in life.”
