Quilts of Valor to honor local veterans Saturday in Waterloo

John Brocka and Devon Wagner (left and center) received handmade quilts last year from Quilts of Valor for their service in the U.S. military.

WATERLOO — Local veterans will be honored Labor Day weekend as part of an annual Quilts of Valor presentation, but those involved say there is a gap in area participation.

On Saturday, Quilts of Valor will present quilts to 11 local veterans at 1 p.m. at the American Legion Becker-Chapman Post 138. The quilts were crafted by Kathy Baldwin and her sister-in-law, Linda Osborn, in Newton. According to Baldwin, the event is an emotional event for those involved.

“It’s not just a matter of, ‘Oh, here’s your quilt,’” Howard said. “There’s quite a story and a presentation that goes with it. And we read back their military service and what they’ve done since and what they did before. You’ll see a lot of quivering lips and a few tears by the time we’re done.”

Quilts of Valor was started in 2003 by Catherine Roberts, a Delaware mother whose son was serving in Iraq. Roberts said she had a dream about how quilts could help soldiers like her son to heal from the traumas they faced in the military.

“The dream was as vivid as real life. I saw a young man sitting on the side of his bed in the middle of the night, hunched over. The permeating feeling was one of utter despair. I could see his war demons clustered around, dragging him down into an emotional gutter,” Roberts said of her dream on the Quilts of Valor website. “Then, as if viewing a movie, I saw him in the next scene wrapped in a quilt. His whole demeanor changed from one of despair to one of hope and well-being. The quilt had made this dramatic change.”

However, the making of Cedar Valley’s quilts have been outsourced to Jasper County. Baldwin explained that the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area and Iowa City are lacking people to do the quilting.

“There is nobody in Waterloo, Cedar Falls or Iowa City doing Quilts of Valor – and this is really sad,” Baldwin said. “It’s an open hole.”

Baldwin said there are local residents who present quilts to Cedar Valley veterans, but not through Quilts of Valor. Baldwin explained an official quilt is nationally registered with the stamp of the organization. While she praised anyone willing to go through the effort of making a quilt for a veteran, she said there’s an added level of distinction to the official presentation.

“There’s just a little more meaning to it than handing someone a quilt,” she said.

The Becker-Chapman post is located at 728 Commercial St. Baldwin and Osborn will both be in attendance for the presentation.

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