Elkhorn Valley Presents Quilts Of Valor To Veterans

Some tears were shed amongst the sea of red white and blue that filled Elkhorn Valleys gym, and those tears were happy tears.
 
Dawn Nelson is a daughter of a veteran and remembers when it changed from sad to happy emotions regarding veterans.
 
“So there was a lot of feelings of sadness and inability to cope, I guess," Nelson remembered. "And thankfully as you saw my dad today, he’s volunteering in our local legion, he’s an active member of the community. And that transition has been amazing as a daughter to see.”
 
Nelson and the Boots, Bits, and Buckles 4H Group wanted to make sure that the veterans knew just how appreciated they are for their service.
 
“These guys so rarely get a thank you," Nelson expressed.  "That being the daughter of a veteran, it meant so much for us to be able to give something back to them in this kind of way and this kind of magnitude that they can take something with them, and appreciate it, and look at it and remember today for the rest of their lives. So that’s really special.”
 
Dozens of Quilts of Valor were presented to local veterans. Members as young as seven years old made, and then gave the quilts away. In the beginning, Nelson was surprised to see so many kids wanting to participate in this project.
 
“These kids, when we were presented with this project, I really thought that there would just be a couple kids that were interested in it," Nelson explained. "But when they were so taken by it, I knew that it was just, it moved my heart. So I really wanted to make it as special of an event for them as possible.”
 
When asked if the kids want to continue with these projects, it was a unanimous yes.
 
“I think it is a really nice tradition for our group to start at the Veterans Day program here at Elkhorn valley," Nelson said.
 
Nelson said that the spark of interest in this project will keep the quilts coming. She hopes that more members will join in on what she hopes will be a tradition.