MONROE - Just more than 100 people filled the pews of United Methodist Church, but their presence on Sunday wasn't for a typical service.
The reason for their rapt attention was the 20 veterans sitting at the front of the room. All members of the church, the men were being honored for their service.
UMC group Faith Stitchers, made up of roughly eight church members, made 24 quilts in less than six months as a part of Quilts of Valor. Four invited veterans were not able to attend the service Sunday and will receive theirs later.
Lynn Zimmerman leads the group. When she joined Faith Stitchers, she thought joining her work with Quilts of Valor would be a good use of time. She didn't expect such a high number to be congregants of UMC.
"We got to looking and we counted 45 and I thought, 'oh, wow,'" Zimmerman said.
So the ladies got to work.
"I was blown away," Zimmerman said.
Some of them were stitching for their spouses, like Phyllis Lentz, whose husband, Roger, served in the Army from 1958 to 1962, and Pauline Blum, whose husband, Bill, served in the Army from 1954 to 1956.
UMC Pastor Randy Booth opened the program by asking attendees to sing along to "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" and thanked the veterans present who "have helped us be who we are in our nation ... and they have kept us free."
Each individual stood if they were able and shared some details about their service, whether it was Army veteran Dick Kundert, who served from 1953 to 1954, until he was called home to help take care of the family business after the death of his father, or Howard Schiller who quipped that his "dates might be a little off" about his time in the Army between 1951 to 1956.
Other quilt recipients were Harold Ruchti, who served in the Navy from 1946 to 1947, Army veterans Harvey Loeffel and Ralph Krauss from 1950 to 1952, Harold Vale from 1945 to 1947, Cal Erickson from 1945 to 1946, Nate Bechtolt from 1954 to 1955, Homer Tacket and Bob Falk from 1951 to 1953, Paul Laube from 1955 to 1957, Harley Shelton from 1951 to 1954, Charlie Vandelin and Ken Parr from 1956 to 1959, and Gary Hessel from 1953 to 1955, Air Force veteran Dave Ambler from 1959 to 1962, and Navy veteran Robbie Robertson from 1956 to 1959.
A majority of these veterans served between 1945 and the late 1950s, though John Schmid noted he served in the Air Force from 1956 to 1978.
The Faith Stitchers plan to honor another group of more than 20 next year.
The reason for their rapt attention was the 20 veterans sitting at the front of the room. All members of the church, the men were being honored for their service.
UMC group Faith Stitchers, made up of roughly eight church members, made 24 quilts in less than six months as a part of Quilts of Valor. Four invited veterans were not able to attend the service Sunday and will receive theirs later.
Lynn Zimmerman leads the group. When she joined Faith Stitchers, she thought joining her work with Quilts of Valor would be a good use of time. She didn't expect such a high number to be congregants of UMC.
"We got to looking and we counted 45 and I thought, 'oh, wow,'" Zimmerman said.
So the ladies got to work.
"I was blown away," Zimmerman said.
Some of them were stitching for their spouses, like Phyllis Lentz, whose husband, Roger, served in the Army from 1958 to 1962, and Pauline Blum, whose husband, Bill, served in the Army from 1954 to 1956.
UMC Pastor Randy Booth opened the program by asking attendees to sing along to "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" and thanked the veterans present who "have helped us be who we are in our nation ... and they have kept us free."
Each individual stood if they were able and shared some details about their service, whether it was Army veteran Dick Kundert, who served from 1953 to 1954, until he was called home to help take care of the family business after the death of his father, or Howard Schiller who quipped that his "dates might be a little off" about his time in the Army between 1951 to 1956.
Other quilt recipients were Harold Ruchti, who served in the Navy from 1946 to 1947, Army veterans Harvey Loeffel and Ralph Krauss from 1950 to 1952, Harold Vale from 1945 to 1947, Cal Erickson from 1945 to 1946, Nate Bechtolt from 1954 to 1955, Homer Tacket and Bob Falk from 1951 to 1953, Paul Laube from 1955 to 1957, Harley Shelton from 1951 to 1954, Charlie Vandelin and Ken Parr from 1956 to 1959, and Gary Hessel from 1953 to 1955, Air Force veteran Dave Ambler from 1959 to 1962, and Navy veteran Robbie Robertson from 1956 to 1959.
A majority of these veterans served between 1945 and the late 1950s, though John Schmid noted he served in the Air Force from 1956 to 1978.
The Faith Stitchers plan to honor another group of more than 20 next year.