Veteran's Angels sew quilts, form friendships, honor vets
The 14 vets who were present to receive their Quilts of Valor on Nov. 11 in Guttenberg, front from left, are Curtis Torrey, Dennis Parker, Terry Meyer, John Berns, Allan Berns, Lowell Moser, Donald Berns; back row, James Clinton, Roger Torrey, Jim Schlueter, Gary Hefel, Roger Klemp, Lee Moser and Lonnie Aulwes. (Press photo by Molly Moser)
By Molly Moser
They call themselves the Veteran’s Angels. Over the past three years, the group has dedicated all their free time to cutting, stitching, binding and ironing more than 175 Quilts of Valor for area veterans.
The Veteran’s Angels are a local chapter of Quilts of Valor, a national grassroots community effort providing quilts stitched with love, prayers and healing thoughts to veterans. Guttenberg residents Joyce Kopecky and Rosalie Kickbush started the group in January of 2013. “Little did we know what we signed on for,” chuckles Kopecky.
“Anytime I’m home with a spare minute, I sew. When you’ve got 10 minutes, you cut and sew,” say the ladies. Each quilt takes several days to complete – if quilters didn’t have the usual distractions like cooking, sleeping, and chatting with one another. The Veteran’s Angels meet monthly at Guttenberg Municipal Hospital to quilt. Sometimes as many as 20 'busy bees' gather there, enjoying camaraderie and walking tacos provided by the GMH Auxiliary.
Kopecky and Kickbush cut pieces and make kits in preparation for monthly gatherings. “Between her and I, we’ve got the kits made up so that when they come to the workshops they better bring their sewing machine or their scissors,” smiled Kickbush. “We have a very active and supportive group that helps. Not everyone sews – some iron, work on binding, or even sort scraps. They are our 'busy bees,' and our busy bees include our long-arm quilter, Jeannie Eilers and of course several individuals who present us with completed quilts ready to present to a Veteran.”
“We use it as a gathering, a chance for people who want to support our veterans to spend a half a day, or two hours. They do what they’re able to do, and we will take it,” said Kopecky. She and Kickbush forged their own friendship through Quilts of Valor. “I hardly knew her. We belong to different churches, and have separate interests,” Kickbush said of their relationship prior to starting the group. Now, Kopecky admits, “There isn’t a day we don’t talk.”
In addition to the hours of volunteer effort required, each quilt requires about $350 in supplies. Donors to the project since its inception include American Legion Post 373, Legion Auxiliary Post 373, Guttenberg Care Center, Clark and Carla Bolsinger, Veterans Memorial Monument, Jim and Sue Osterhaus, Ann Olinger, Fidelity Bank & Trust, Arma Jean and the late Don Newbern, Peggy Degnan and the late Irish Degnan, B.J. Drahos, Mae Jetter, Roger Szemkus, Guttenberg Rotary, V.F.W., RAGBRAI, Ingleside Club, Sharon Walter/Mike Simon Memorial, Kurt Biermann, Ed Bolsinger, Floyd and Betty Westhoff, Joyce and the late Vernon Cherne, Mike Stoeffler, Dick and Darla Zittergruen, Phoebe and Rick Johnson, Upper Mississippi Gaming Corporation, Chuck and Jane Siebrecht, Bill Walke Memorial, Library Board of Directors and staff and Steve Zittergruen/Julie Zittergruen memorial, Judy and Alan Wright, Kay Nagel, Jane Thein, John Meyer, Larry and Carol Moser, Willard Morarend and son, Bill Zittergruen, John Nagel, Harvey and Karen Torrey, Dick Kann/Lakeside Corp., Marilyn Koehler, Judy Olson/ Lorimer Olson memorial and Merlin Torrey.
All service members are eligible to receive a Quilt of Valor. Quilts are presented by referral and are implemented according to the age of the veteran and what war he or she served in. “We don’t pick and choose who we give them to – it’s all in the referrals,” say the organizers. “We already have 20 names for next Memorial Day, but if somebody sends us a referral in the next six months and it’s a WWII veteran, they would be added to the current group and the last referral would be held over for the next presentation.”
Quilts are presented annually on Memorial Day and Veterans Day, as well as at other times and places for health reasons. The Veteran’s Angels can present approximately 20-25 quilts at a time. They’ve been overwhelmed by the responses from vets and their families, and are always looking for referrals. Referral forms can be picked up at the Guttenberg Public Library as well as at The Guttenberg Press.
This year, 14 Quilts of Valor were presented with a hug at Guttenberg’s Veterans Day program on Nov. 11. Come Christmas, these 14 vets will receive a card from the Veteran’s Angels with a photograph of them and their quilt – yet another reminder that their service is remembered and appreciated.
Kickbush and Kopecky say they are motivated to keep quilting by the veterans that come forward when their songs are played during the Veterans Day program. “The first time we presented was at Veterans Day. I looked at her and said, ‘You and I are not going to live long enough to provide quilts for all these veterans,’” said Kopecky. Three years and nearly 200 quilts later, the Veteran’s Angels are still trying to do just that.
