BOYERTOWN, Pa. — Hundreds of hours of tedious work, huge heaps of colorful fabric and an endless amount of love and gratitude were sewn into 100 quilts crafted by members of the QuiltMakers of Boyertown, which will be on their way to troops serving in Iraq in the near future.
"I just thought it would be something from home," said Bobbie Dewey, a member of the group based less than 40 miles northwest of Philadelphia, whose own home is in nearby Pottstown.
A small "something from home," Dewey explained, can mean a great deal to a soldier when he or she is in a war zone hundreds of miles away from their friends and family members. She knows firsthand just how far that distance spans, as her sons, Geoffrey Ostrowski, 21, and Matthew Ostrowski, 24, served in the Army in Iraq and Afghanistan, respectively.
Having previously made Christmas stockings to send to one of her son's units when he was serving in Afghanistan around the holidays, Dewey said she had the idea for a QuiltMakers project: make 100 quilts to send to service members to give them a touch of the comfort of home.
"When my son came home from Afghanistan, I saw this red and white thing in his bag," Dewey said. "It was his stocking. He said 'I'll never get rid of it.'"
Dewey realized that a stocking that meant so much to her son, who had family at home waiting and praying for him, might mean as much or perhaps more to a soldier who did not have a strong support system at home.
"There are some boys over there who don't get the letter every day from mom or sister," she said.
She knew her son Geoffrey Ostrowski would be redeployed and after coming up with the idea to make the quilts for his unit, she took the idea to the QuiltMakers of Boyertown.
"There wasn't a dry eye in the room" after the presentation was over, Dewey explained.
She said everyone jumped on board and has been working hard since January to complete the 100 quilts.
"I think they saw sons and grandsons and maybe even a great-grandson" when they thought of my son serving in the Army, Dewey said of the potential motivation of QuiltMakers.
For Kay Bachkai, deciding whether to participate in making the quilts was an easy decision.
"I'm a strong supporter of our troops, I'm a member of D.A.R. (Daughters of the American Revolution), so my ancestors fought in the Revolutionary War," Bachkai said. "Anything that supports the troops, I'm supportive of."
"I think it shows them (the troops) that we really took a lot of time and effort and thought," Bachkai continued. "They really know there are people back in the states thinking about them when they're out there putting their life on the line."
(Continued)
Related Articles:
More Great MilitaryAvenue.com content:
Find Military Discounts in your community
You have Questions? We have MilitaryAvenue Answers!
Our Letters to You, MilitaryAvenue.com's Military Family Blog
Subscribe to MilitaryAvenue Alerts, monthly military-discounts & incentives right to your email box: Manage Subscriptions
The Reading Room, full of relevant news related to the military family
Moving Tools, Our Moving and Relocation Tools for Military Families