History

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Phyllis Biffle Elmore

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(1883-1988)

Her Story

Phyllis Biffle-Elmore was born in Detroit, Michigan. At the age of four, she was sent to the tiny town of Livingston, Alabama to be raised by her grandmother Lula Horn (1883-1988), who made beautiful quilts out of the clothing of her loved ones. Each strip of fabric tells the story of the wearer’s life and death. She shared these mostly tragic, sometimes witty, but always moving tales with little Phyllis as she sewed their clothes into a quilt that threaded broken lives back together. Phyllis now shares these profound stories with the world as Grandmother Lula told them to her. At 13, Phyllis reluctantly returned to her parents’ home in Detroit. There, she completed junior high and her first two years of high school before moving to Cleveland, Ohio where she received her high school diploma.

On the right – Portrait of a young Grandma Lula.

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Phyllis joined the United States Air Force

In 1973, Phyllis joined the United States Air Force as a WAF (Women’s Air Force) and was one of the first female B-52 mechanics. She served one tour before joining the U.S. Army National Guard. Phyllis is one of only a handful of women in the military who served in three major military conflicts. She was a Vietnam Era Veteran who served two temporary duty assignments to Vietnam before the 1975 fall of Saigon. In 1991, she was deployed to Saudi Arabia as a member of Operation Desert Storm. Then in December 2003, as a member of the Army National Guard, she was deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Phyllis 1973 in U.S. Air Force Basic Training, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas with friend.

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After leaving the Air Force Phyllis attended the University of Maryland, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology and Social Work.

Her civilian career included working as a counselor for incarcerated youth and for women who were victims of domestic violence. She also spent ten years as a counseling supervisor for youth and adults suffering from alcohol and substance abuse.

Phyllis visiting the facility she used to work at. (Note: Her surname at the time was Lawson.)

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After retiring in 2013, Phyllis began writing full-time and started her memoir, Quilt of Souls. Soon after, she began promoting her ‘Quilt of Souls’ quilt via lectures and other public presentations. She self-published a portion of her memoir in 2015, which garnered a great deal of buzz from social, print, and television media. As a result of the popularity of her Quilt of Souls exhibit, she has been interviewed and appeared in over 35 media outlets including internet blog talks, online newspapers, social media forums, television, radio, and media advertisements. She has also been a guest speaker at over seventy venues including, libraries, genealogical conventions, quilting clubs, book clubs, colleges, and secondary schools throughout the United States.

Phyllis received her Master’s Certificate in Creative Writing from the University of Denver.

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Phyllis Biffle Elmore immediately draws one into the world of her childhood and creates visual images so evocative one can almost feel the heat and humidity and smell the smells of the Alabama countryside she comes to call home. At times sweet, charming and funny it is also powerfully direct about the horrors and brutality of slavery and the Jim Crow south. But most of all, it's a beautiful tribute to the strong African American women of this tight knit community who lifted each other up despite so much trying to hold them down. It's a poignant tale of sisterhood, forgiveness and unconditional love. I loved this book and came to love all its characters.

I opened this book, read the first page and never stopped until the very end. I was so captivated. There isn’t enough space here to explain how this story will forever remain in my heart (and liver too 😉). We can all learn life’s greatest lessons from this story which is so beautifully written about love, loss, tragedy, triumph, truth, forgiveness & never losing faith in God. This world needs a zillion more Lulas! 🥰

A little girl being seen and not heard, feeling abandoned and alone. The grandmother that saved her with love, and wisdom. Puzzles of tolerance, forgiveness, violence, love, and joy. The quilts of souls that provided warmth, comfort, and healing. The atrocities of those who are desperate. Spiritual influences, tinctures for healing, life, and death of those young and old. This book has a myriad of true tales. I love it. One person found this helpfu

History

Phyllis Biffle Elmore

(1883-1988)

Her Story

Phyllis joined the United States Air Force

Phyllis 1973 in U.S. Air Force Basic Training, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas with friend.

Reviews From Amazon

Testimonials

What They Say

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