On Saturday, August 7th, 2021, the town of Franklin, with a color guard provided by American Legion Post 75, celebrated Purple Heart Day at the Franklin Elks Hall, honoring all its veterans who have been wounded in the line of duty. As a special part of the ceremony, eight veterans from Franklin were nominated for Quilts of Valor. 

“It’s very rewarding for me to be able to give the quilts to the veterans,” says Theresa Perrault, Massachusetts State Coordinator for Quilts of Valor. “It’s my way of giving back. As the state coordinator, I gather up quilts from all the little groups that make them, and when there’s a request, I present them.” In addition to the six small Quilts of Valor throughout Massachusetts, Perrault says the groups gets other quilts are “donated by organizations such as guilds and other ladies who decide to get together to do a veterans’ recognition quilt. And that’s fine. We do a pretty good job of getting as many vets as we can. Covid brought us down for a while, but we have gotten back to doing presentations with small groups.”

Originally begun with a focus on young service members wounded in Irag and Afghanistan, Quilts of Valor expanded its mission to be inclusive of veterans who have taken the oath to give their life for their country. To be nominated to receive a Quilt of Valor, a veteran simply must have been “touched by war,” says Perrault. “We don’t have any special criteria for vets to be nominated for a quilt award. There’s no special place you had to have served. You don’t have to have served in combat or be injured. Just touched by war.” 

Each quilt has a label on it with the name of the veteran, who also receives a certificate. Most, but not all, are the colors of the Stars and Stripes. “It doesn’t have to be patriotic,” says Perrault. Sometimes, she explains, quilts are made to reflect the veteran’s personal interests. All quilts are made “to cover service members and veterans touched by war with comforting and healing Quilts of Valor.”

Franklin vets honored with quilts include, Lawrence P. Bederian, Richard G. Bernheart, Travis Bowser, Robert Catalano, Alfred J. D’Orazio, David Hamblen, John McKinley and Peter Realini.

“It’s been 50 years since I got back from Vietnam,” said one of the eight veterans honored with a quilt, at the Franklin ceremony, “and it’s the first time I’ve been honored for my service.”

In fact, Perrault told Franklin veterans receiving their quilts, that the quilts “are meant to be used, not hung on a wall. Use the quilt. It is important for us to know that we are able to touch you and say thank you for your service.”

Quilts of Valor began in 2003, with just a few quilts. The group has since grown to about 6,000 groups and 10,000 regular members that sew across the country and has awarded over 278,847 quilts to U.S. veterans.

“I have had, personally, times where I have given out a quilt, and the vet is quiet, doesn’t say much, but I may get a note from him or his family saying, “I buried myself in that quilt every day, and it helps me from day to day,’” says Perrault.

For more information about Quilts of Valor, visit qovf.org.