Quilters provide support, comfort

By Susan Jessen

CLINTON — They provide support to the troops deployed overseas. And they provide comfort to the survivors of those who have fallen in battle.

Such are the missions of the quilters involved in the national project, founded by Don Beld in Los Angeles, called “Home of the Brave Quilts.” The coordinator of the Iowa chapter is Sandi Carstensen, of Clinton. She has been involved in the effort for several years, explaining it all started with a simple request form her son-in-law, stationed in Iraq, for a pillowcase.

That one case was followed by requests from his unit for more pillowcases, so Sandi contacted all of her quilting friends (including the online ones) and they began a series of “Operation Projects” — Operation Pillowcase, Operation Christmas Stockings and Operation Cuddle-Ups were born, all with the intent to provide comfort and support to the servicemen and women deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.

It was during this time that Carstensen also became heavily involved in the production of the Home of the Brave Quilts. She explained how Civil War soldiers were presented with a pillowcase and a 4-by-7-foot quilt, rolled into a bedroll to take with them, as they prepared to go off to battle. These bedrolls were produced by lady volunteers and distributed through the U.S. Sanitary Commission, the predecessor to today’s American Red Cross.

To honor those men and women who make the ultimate sacrifice in today’s battles, the 1860s tradition was resurrected — Carstensen and her colleagues nationwide produce a quilt, to be presented in memoriam, to each family of a fallen soldier. Each quilt is comprised of 15 blocks, reproductions of the Civil War era originals, that are assembled into a quilt with sashes, backing and edging. Carstensen generally does the completion of each Iowa quilt, which takes about eight to 10 hours to finish.

Many of the donating quilters add their names and locations to the center of their block, so family members are reminded their loved one is remembered by people throughout the country. Carstensen and her husband, Dennis, have traveled around the state to present the final quilts to families in the same bedroll form of the originals during the Civil War.

She said each presentation is a humbling, but gratifying experience. And every family, Carstensen added, has been deeply touched by the outpouring of caring and concern each quilt represents.

To date, Carstensen said the Iowa chapter has had to present quilts to 41 soldiers’ families; on Aug. 13, Carstensen traveled to the State Capitol in Des Moines to present quilts to a number of families, as well as one to the state and Gov. Tom Vilsack. The group currently has another quilt to complete and present to the wife of an Iowa soldier killed Aug. 20.

But there are those missions of comfort to the living that still remain, and Carstensen and her counterparts around the nation are in midst of their fall Operation Christmas Stockings drive.

According to Carstensen, the quilters to date have shipped more than 4,000 pillowcases to troops abroad and almost that many Christmas stockings. Carstensen said the Iowa quilters’ current “adopted” units are the 82nd Airborne, and the 1-133rd National Guard unit from northeast Iowa.

The goal is to ensure every soldier receives a stocking stuffed with items like soap, puzzle books, handheld games, socks, beef jerky and toothpaste — things taken for granted here in the States, but considered luxuries in the bases in the Mideast.

She added Pleasantview Elementary students in Pleasant Valley and Camanche Middle School students are involved in this year’s drive, gathering items for stocking stuffing. Carstensen is looking for additional volunteers to make the quilted stockings, as well as donations of material and items for stuffing.

One often overlooked need, which is nonetheless vital to the efforts, is financial donations. Carstensen said it costs approximately $20 to $25 to ship each box of stockings and their contents overseas. She admits she and her husband spent more than $1,000 of their own money last year to get the goods to the troops.

For more information on how to become involved or contribute to the various Home of the Brave quilters’ projects, check out the Web site at www.homeofthebravequilts.com, e-mail Sandi Carstensen at quiltnweave@homeofthebravequilts.com or call her at 242-7213.

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