Menu
Quilts of Valor warm hearts of local veterans, others
BAINBRIDGE -- In a ceremony awash in red, white and blue, the ladies of the One Stitch at a Time quilt club again honored their country, their family, their friends and their neighbors in a touching post-Veterans Day ceremony Saturday at Lifespring Church west of Bainbridge.
Ten Putnam County service men and women -- representing a variety of wartime experiences -- were awarded Quilts of Valor in a patriotic event that has become an annual occasion, thanks to the One Stitch at a Time group.
After participating in a Putnam County Fair quilt block contest that focused on red, white and blue creations, the club was inspired to put together beautifully elaborate quilts honoring local veterans Ronald Robbins, Charles E. Lattrell, Arvel Norton, Jesse Haltom, Nicholas Wayne Boller, Andrew Alspaugh, Barbara Phelps, Ted Frazier, Jim Derringer and Cletus O. Sult.
Eight of the 10 veterans were on hand Saturday afternoon despite a raging thunderstorm that swept through the area. Frazier was unable to attend and Sult’s quilt was awarded posthumously to great-granddaughter Katie Douglas.
The oldest of the group on hand, 92-year-old Charles E. Lattrell, ”took more than one bullet for us and our country,” program emcee Cindy Carter noted.
The World War II veteran was wounded twice and was awarded the Purple Heart while serving in Europe. He enlisted in the Army on Dec. 28, 1943, serving the 12th Armored Infantry as a rifleman.
”Thank God I’m lucky and I’m still here,” he said Saturday as Mary Jane Toney and Any Sebring enveloped him in his quilt.
Another World War II veteran, Arvel Norton, was confined to a wheelchair but still eager to participate.
“I appreciate this very much,” a touched Norton said. “It’s quite a surprise.”
Norton enlisted in the Army but when he was due to leave for the war, he jumped off the back of a truck, badly spraining his ankle and was destined not to see action as the war wore down.
The mission of the Quilts of Valor Foundation, the national group’s website states, is “to cover service members and veterans touched by war with comforting and healing Quilts of Valor.” Each of the recipients Saturday was touched by the gesture.
A few were a little too overcome by the moment to speak publicly, leaving the moment to others like Jesse Haltom to put the day in perspective.
“For me it’s an honor just to be in the same room with World War II veterans and Vietnam vets,” said Haltom who enlisted in the Army in March 2003 and was deployed to Iraq with the 101st Airborne.
“It means a lot when people say ‘thank you,’” Haltom said, admitting he really doesn’t like to show just how much, however.
Jim Derringer, a member of the Roachdale VFW who helped present the colors to start the ceremony, is a Vietnam vet who welcomes the public’s change in attitude from that era to now in how our veterans are received.
“It’s amazing the respect people have for our veterans this day and age,” Derringer said after receiving his quilt.
Capt. Cletus O. Sult lived to be 96 despite ending up in a full-body cast and getting total disability when a parachute jump from a plane went awry while he was in the Army Air Corps.
His great-granddaughter, Katie Douglas, cared for him during his latter years and she was awarded the quilt as the final recipient on the day.
“I’m sure when she wraps up in it,” Carter said, “she’ll feel a big hug from her grandfather.”
The audience at Lifespring Church also heard from Senior Pastor Gerron Ayento, who spoke about the difficult times the country has seen recently and how unfortunately “sometimes it’s easier to kneel than it is to stand.”
He said our veterans deserve more and a thank you is a good start.
“Each time you see a veteran,” Ayento said, “lean over and say ‘thank you.’ Two words that mean a lot, more than any medal that could be awarded or was.”
Guest speaker for the second annual event was Dave Byrdwell, owner of Dave’s All-America Pizza on the west side of Danville. His restaurant is decked out in a patriotic theme with mannequins dressed in military uniforms and service souvenirs galore, like a 911 firesuit, a four-star general’s jacket and even a radio salvaged from a submarine.
“We’ve got 16 uniforms on display, hundreds of hats, plaques, pictures and flags given to us by our customers,” he said.
Byrdwell wants to leave an impression on all who enter his restaurant, whether it’s to partake of the immense salad bar, the favorite prime rib or to pick up a pizza.
“I want to remind all who pass through our restaurant doors,” he said, “that their freedoms were paid for at a price.
“We still are the greatest nation in the world,” Byrdwell said. “We want to stand up for our flag, stand up for our colors and stand up for our veterans.”
Warm thoughts, for sure, to go along with those warm, comforting quilts.