Six local veterans receive Quilts of Valor

Six Armed Forces veterans from the area received Quilts of Valor from the Hayward Piecemakers Quilts of Valor Stitchers to thank them for their bravery, sacrifice and valor in serving our nation.

The quilts were presented during the fourth annual veterans picnic hosted by Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7233 Sunday June 30 at the Hayward Veterans Community Center.

Quilt guild member Wendie Miller said the local quilters have presented 203 Quilts of Valor from 2017 through May 2024.

The quilt recipients on June 30 were:

Specialist 4 Tom Teer of Hayward, who served in the U.S. Army’s 25th Infantry Division from 1961-63. He was assigned to the small close combat nuclear artillery unit known as Davey Crockett.

E4 Matt Fitch of Hayward. He served in the U.S. Army from 1977-81, stationed in Germany with Military Police Unit 502 out of Fort Hood, Texas.

Roman LaRonge of Lac Courte Oreilles. He served in the U.S. Air Force Security Police and was deployed to Afghanistan.

Anthony Vabalaitis of Hayward, E4, served in the U.S. Army from 1May 1988 to June 1993, in the Gulf War in 1990-91 as a Specialist Backup Medica, then trained for special units.

E4 Rockne Gunther of Hayward, served in the U.S. Navy from January 1967 to October 1970, served on the flagship Little Rock of the Mediterranean.

CW4 Mike Berard of Hayward, served in the Army National Guard from 1975-81 and 1991-2016, deployed to Iraq.

“The mission of the Quilts of Valor Foundation is to cover service members and veterans touched by war with comforting and healing Quilts of Valor,” said Mays.

Each quilter team consists of a quilt topper—a person who pieces the top from various fabrics; and a quilter who uses a long-arm quilting machine to create each quilt.

Quilts of Valor awarded nation-wide in May totaled 1,566, and for 2024 to date, 10,937. Total quilts awarded since the program started are 393702.

The Quilts of Valor Stitchers at the June 30 picnic were Micky Mays, Wendie H. Miller, Midge O’Connor and Becky Porter.

Each veteran at the Hayward picnic received a door prize, announced by Rick Richter, Post 7233 commander.