Brother Duane works at
the Veteran's Hospital in Palo Alto, California. He started his
ministry there in February 2003. Heading towards Building 110 he
walks past
the Garden of Memories, a rose garden planted for all
the service men and women who died from their injuries at this
VA. It is an active memorial, and roses continue to be planted
for those who die there.
Describing some of the injuries he says, "A young man cannot
sleep on his back, only on his side. Some of the other patients
say, why is he here? He is not wounded. But when this young man
lies on his back, all he sees are the dead and horribly
mutilated bodies of his comrades that it was his job to wash and
put into body bags. Many of the women have spinal cord injuries.
These are caused by the explosives detonated underneath the
armored vehicles they ride in, where there is no protection."
A believer in the power of prayer, Brother Duane describes two
incidents in which he suggests that his prayers over some of the
the wounded soldiers has had a direct and immediate effect. He
visited one soldier who was going blind, prayed with him saying,
"Close your eyes." Then he passed the pyx containing the
Eucharistic host before the man's eyes. When the wounded man
opened his eyes, he cried out, "I can see! I can see!"
Another such case is that of a vet from the Korean War, Tom
Durkin, who had been told that he would have to have his legs
amputated. Duane went to visit him before the surgery and
"prayed hard" with him, praying to
Fr. Vincent Capodanno, M.M. for intercession. When Durkin went
into surgery, the surgeon looked at his legs, tested the blood
flow to them, and declared the amputation unnecessary.
Down the hall is a 19 year old patient who is under suicide
watch. He has burns over much of his body. He speaks softly,
tentatively, as much from the trauma as from the tracheal tube
that had recently been removed.
Brother Duane explains, "We only go in if the door is open.
Under no circumstances do we wake any of the patients if they're
asleep. He emphasizes: these are not ordinary hospital patients,
they are all veterans of America's wars.
At the dialysis unit Gary Branham, an airman first class in the
Vietnam War says he is alive thanks to Brother Duane's prayers.
"I'm there to relate to the Band of Brothers. This explains why
we do so much for each other. Greater love has no man than to
give up his life for his friends." |