{"id":103687,"date":"2022-01-04T16:16:00","date_gmt":"2022-01-04T21:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/department.va.gov\/?p=103687"},"modified":"2025-03-12T08:02:30","modified_gmt":"2025-03-12T12:02:30","slug":"blanket-donation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/department.va.gov\/history\/blanket-donation\/","title":{"rendered":"From the Collection: A Donation From VA Employee"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"VA<\/a>
VA Psychologist Arena Mueller holds a 1930 Veterans Administration blanket she\u00a0donated to the National VA History Center. Photo taken at the Ernest Childers VA Outpatient Clinic in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (VA Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

VA has always been a central piece of Dr. Arena Mueller\u2019s life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1987, Mueller\u2019s mother began work as a VA nurse at the Jack C. Montgomery VA Medical Center<\/a> in Muskogee, Oklahoma and retired from the hospital 23 years later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I was 12 years old, I sang \u2018Oh Holy Night\u2019 in the chapel on Christmas Eve,\u201d Mueller said with a laugh. \u201cI kind of feel like I grew up at the VA hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following in her mother\u2019s footsteps<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In 2009, Mueller decided to follow in her mother\u2019s footsteps and care for Veterans. She\u2019s a psychologist and local recovery coordinator, also at the Jack C. Montgomery VA Medical Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interesting flea market item<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In her off-time, Mueller enjoys visiting antique stores. \u201cI love history. I typically make the rounds through various Tulsa flea markets and antique shops.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About 10 years ago, she noticed a VA emblem on a tan and brown wool blanket while browsing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was folded in such a way that I could see the VA emblem,\u201d Mueller said. \u201cI immediately unfolded it and saw the year 1930 stamped on it. It was only $25 so I scooped it up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The blanket spent time in her home and was also used as a decoration in her VA office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donating to National VA History Center<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Recently, Mueller read about the National VA History Center<\/a> and decided to contact them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI told them about this blanket that I had, and they said they\u2019d be interested in seeing some pictures,\u201d Mueller said. \u201cI sent them some and they responded letting me know that the collections committee voted unanimously to accept my donation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the exact history of the blanket will never be known, it is something to contemplate. Who was the Veteran it warmed in 1930? What happiness, joy, tears, and sorrow did it witness?  Did it provide any comfort during difficult times? How, almost 100 years later, did it wind up with a price tag attached?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One important clue might be the state of Oklahoma opened the Soldiers Memorial Hospital in Muskogee in 1923 to care for American doughboys who fought in Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI do believe this blanket is probably from the Muskogee VA hospital,\u201d said Mueller. \u201cWorld War I Veterans probably slept under it and were cared for underneath it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The National VA History Center will be the museum and archival center for all things historical in the VA mission. It will be on the Dayton VA Medical Center campus \u2013 itself a designated National Historic Landmark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the idea is not new, recent actions to make it a reality are. Ceremonies marking its official establishment \u2013 and the start of renovation work on two historic buildings to house the collection \u2013 were held in August 2020. Based on the pace of private fundraising by the Foundation, receipt of grants, or other dedicated funding partnerships, the center\u2019s forecasted opening will be in 2025-26.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is an article from the Eastern Oklahoma VA Health Care System and provides an example of the role the National VA History Center serves in receiving artifacts into the collection<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Curator Corner blog – A VA employee found a historic blanket at a flea market. She then learned about the National VA History Center and made a call. Soon it was a donation item to the collection. Check out this courtesy story from the Eastern Oklahoma VA Health Care System.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":103697,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[128,17,131],"class_list":["post-103687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-curator-corner","tag-from-the-collection","tag-national-va-history-center","tag-submitted-story"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/department.va.gov\/history\/blanket-donation\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"From the Collection: A Donation From VA Employee","url":"http:\/\/department.va.gov\/history\/blanket-donation\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/department.va.gov\/history\/blanket-donation\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/department.va.gov\/history\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2022\/06\/history-curator-corner-20220104.png?w=288","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/department.va.gov\/history\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2022\/06\/history-curator-corner-20220104.png"},"articleSection":"Curator Corner","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Department of Veterans Affairs (jdt)"}],"creator":["Department of Veterans Affairs (jdt)"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"VA History","logo":""},"keywords":["from the collection","national va history center","submitted story"],"dateCreated":"2022-01-04T21:16:00Z","datePublished":"2022-01-04T21:16:00Z","dateModified":"2025-03-12T12:02:30Z"},"rendered":"