2008 Year in Review

Christmas in July - Stockings for the Troops

Pictured left to right: Nancy White, Mary Black, Connie Barr, Diane Holmes, Sandi Carstensen, Marjorie Gibson, Ashley Stralow, Ladonna Brandau, Jean Temple, and Lynne Finnicum.

by M.E. Brackemyer - The Morrison Post

“It all started with one dark colored pillowcase,” said Sandi Carstensen, Founder and National Coordinator Operation Support for Deployed Military. (OSFDM) was founded in response to requests from active service personnel deployed overseas to sustain Operation Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom, Iraq. The intent is to send a little piece of home to our troops to let them know that they have not been forgotten.

Operation Support Pillowcase all began when Sandi’s son was stationed in Iraq, he wrote and asked his mom for one dark colored pillowcase. One pillowcase led to another and another. With the support of on-line quilting friends, pillowcases led to Christmas stockings and to quilts, or Cuddle-Ups, for newborn patriots. Our sewing angels, as we have come to know them, work year round to answer the call for these homemade items.

Christmas in July is all about stockings. Quilters from Washington state to Florida participate in this endeavor. This will be the sixth year to send stockings and the quilters are busy at it.

Connie Barr and Constantly Stitching is taking part for the second year. Last year they made 250 stockings in two and a half days. This year they are sewing on three Mondays from 1 to 8 pm. In two weeks they have made approximately 220 stockings. Sewing angels from Morrison range in age from 10 to almost 90.

To date over 4000 stockings have been sent to the troops. I asked Sandi who fills the stockings and she responded, “We solicit stocking stuffers and at first we filled them, but now I usually send the stocking and the stuffers to the Chaplain of the Unit and he fills them and hands them out.”

If you would like with this project you can also “adopt a box” by sending a cash donation to help cover the expense of postage. Sandi said, “It takes $15.00 - $20.00 to ship each box.”

Operation Support for Deployed Military depends on people like you to donate their time, talent, money and materials to create these items and to supply the goodies that are put into stockings. If you would like more information about these projects or if you would like to volunteer to help us meet these special requests from our troops, please send an email to quiltnweave@cis.net

You are also invited to Join our Yahoo chat forum. We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all those who are volunteering their time and resources to send a touch of home to our troops overseas.

HOME OF THE BRAVE QUILT PROJECT

Throughout history, the United States has honored its military heroes in many ways--with plaques, parades, statues, memorials and, more recently, quilts. To date, the Home of the Brave Quilt Project (HOTBQP) has presented homemade, Civil War inspired quilts to the family members of Fallen Heroes who gave their lives while in service to our country, primarily during the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.

by Dawn Zuidema, theCity1.com
August 6, 2008