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Room full of 'Hugs'
By Lynn A. Wade
Nevada Daily Mail
Keirin Hatch led the way into a room at Nevada Optometric Center in Nevada, Mo., crowded with stacks and stacks of fabric. In the room were more than 300 quilts -- strips and squares sewn together with care -- every stitch an expression of hope and home, meant for soldiers from all walks of life who are fulfilling their duties in Iraq.
These are the "Quilted Hugs" of the project of the same name -- an effort to send a tangible 'hug' a half a world away, in the form of a quilt.
Each is constructed of drab tan and sandy colors -- to blend in with the terrain, so as not to make a target of its user in wartorn Iraq.
In one corner of the room were quilts ear-marked for specific servicemen and women -- made with a certain person in mind by community members and friends.
Nevertheless, the bulk of the quilts were made with just as much care and kindness, by anonymous souls, for soldiers they've never met, to honor their service and to let them know that someone at home cares about them.
Such was the case with three unique quilts from Nevada. Two of these lay atop the bundles -- one from the police department, the other from the fire department. Each bears the department's insignia, but more importantly, each is signed with the personal messages of the staff.
Some messages are simple and caring -- like, "God Bless You," others carried a hint of humor, and all were clearly heartfelt.
Finishing touches were still being made Tuesday on the third, from the Vernon County Sheriff's Office.
"These three will be given away with a drawing, to ensure fairness," said Hatch, a member of Bushwhacker Quilt Guild, conceived the idea months ago; but she gives most of the credit to making it all happen to her daughters, Joni Hatch and Ann Jones -- and the hundreds of people throughout the county, state and country who worked together to make this happen.
"Joni is our silent partner. She cut, literally, hundreds of yards of fabric," Hatch said.
The guild members set out in September to create 153 quilts for soldiers from Barton, Cedar and Vernon counties that were to be deployed to Iraq around the first of the year.
Jones checked with the local National Guard administration to make sure the soldiers could take the quilts along if they had them, and a deadline of Dec. 17 was set. It seemed a daunting job.
"I never thought it would be anything like this," Hatch said, waving a hand around the room that temporarily stored the quilts.
Once the goal was met, she confided, the group decided not to publicize how many they'd received until this week, as they prepare to donate the quilts in a special ceremony on Friday.
"Someone said to me, 'I don't want it to be overkill. What if mine doesn't really matter?'" Hatch said.
But every quilt still matters, since many soldiers are now in or will be going to Iraq.
Viewing the quilts, Cindy Johnson pushed back tears, emotions taking over as the effort that had obviously gone into every quilt soaked into her soul.
"Look at this one, and this," she said, exclaiming wonder at the intricate designs stitched into the plain squares of desert-hued fabric.
Johnson will be burning the midnight oil between Tuesday and Friday, doing her part to finish her own quilt to donate to the project. Hers will truly be a community effort -- made from squares purchased with donations from the community, cut into squares by volunteers like Joni Hatch and sewn together by Johnson.
Johnson's not alone in having received support from others to help with each stop of the project. Quilters helped with the quilting and finishing.
A 4-H group held a special session to help put them together, and many, many businesses and individuals pitched in with all sorts of assistance from discounting fabric and sewing materials for purchase to providing boxes for temporary storage to passing the word along to people in other communities.
"That's what this is all about. All of us working together. One does a little bit, someone else chips in something else, and before you know it, you've all really made a difference," Hatch said.
Jones says the hope is that these quilts will be taken to Iraq, and perhaps given to other soldiers when the original owners of the quilts come home.
The group plans to parade the quilts around the Square and along Austin, finally ending at the National Guard Armory on Cherry Street, where an official ceremony will be conducted.
On a whim, Jones invited President George W. Bush to the ceremony, and received a call from the White House in response. The President won't be attending, but "I never expected any kind of response. They thanked us and congratulated us for getting this done," Jones said.
She, too, can't help but be pleased with the success of the program. Quilts were donated from as far away as Las Vegas, Nev. Some came from parts unknown, sent anonymously, and most came from Missouri and Kansas towns including Nevada, El Dorado Springs, Harrisonville, Butler, Appleton City, Rockville, Rich Hill, Buffalo, Jerico Springs, Stockton, Springfield, Lamar, Deerfield, Milo, Pleasanton, Kan., and many other towns and cities.
"In fact, there was a shortage of drab-colored fabric in this area and in the Springfield area. Suppliers were wondering what was going on," Jones said.
Inspired by the success of the project, Hatch has conceived a new effort to begin as soon as the "Quilted Hugs" leave Nevada.
She and her band of merry quilters -- with the help of anyone else who wants to get involved -- plan to construct quilts for wounded soldiers who are coming home.