Payment accepted in hugs: Huntley group honors veterans with handmade quilts

A Huntley-area sewing group honors veterans in its own way – with handmade quilts.

The Gazebo Valor Quilts group has been making quilts for veterans since 2011. Joan Ausbury, one of the members, said they got started with seed money earned from a quilt show.

The guild is distinct from the national Quilts of Valor organization. The Huntley-area quilters were at one point affiliated with the national group, but they split off in 2014 because they wanted the quilts they make to be distributed locally, according to its history.

The group started when the Gazebo Quilters of Huntley sent a representative to a planning meeting for the Northern Illinois Quiltfest, and the idea for giving quilts in honor of veterans was born. In August 2010, the group held a “Weekend of Valor” at the Huntley Park District. In the years since, the group has presented veterans with thousands of quilts.

“We did Honor Flights,” giving out “60 to 70 quilts at a time,” Ausbury said of the trips provided to veterans to see war memorials.

Ausbury said the guild has given more than 4,000 quilts to veterans, most of whom are McHenry County-based, but some are in Kane County, too.

The guild unites the quilts with veterans and has several ceremonies to do so every year, but it will sometimes do a personal ceremony for, say, a 100-year-old World War II vet, Ausbury said. Stressing the group’s mission to keep their quilts local, she said members don’t ship quilts anywhere.

Sometimes veterans sign up to receive a quilt. Other times, members will approach veterans if they’re seen around town with, for example, a hat on that displays their military background, said Bev Kenny, who joined the group because of her love of sewing. Recently, she was able to connect with some veterans at the Crystal Lake Johnny Appleseed festival.

Kenny’s husband is a veteran, and she said many members of the Valor Quilts group are spouses of veterans.

“It’s such an honor to dedicate a quilt to a veteran,” Kenny said. The group has given quilts to about 10 people who live in her Sun City neighborhood. When one of those neighbors died, the quilt she sewed was on display at the church during the funeral.

“That really touched me,” Kenny said.

The quilts are about 70-by-80 inches, and are not bed-sized, Ausbury said. They are crafted in shades of red, white and blue, Kenny said. Each quilt also has a label that displays the name of the veteran, the date they received the quilt and who pieced and quilted the quilt.

Although each quilt uses the same color scheme, “they’re all unique,” Kenny said.

All veterans, whether they served stateside, overseas or in a conflict zone, are eligible to receive a quilt.

“So many vets will say, ‘I don’t deserve this,’” Ausbury said. “Well, yes, you do.”

When the veterans get the quilts, “they’re all thrilled,” Kenny said.

Kenny said some of the ceremonies at which they present the quilts take place at Shepherd of the Prairie Lutheran Church, where the group meets monthly, and also at the Huntley Culver’s, where the manager is an ally. The group also does fundraisers at Culver’s, Kenny said.

At the ceremonies, there’s often a fire truck with a waving flag, and sometimes a musician comes to play taps.

“It’s just a really special ceremony,” Kenny said.

The guild’s work is funded solely through donations and, in addition to monetary donations, members are always looking for people to take kits and sew the top of the quilt.

For the recipients, “the only payment we require is a hug,” Kenny said.

If you’re interested in connecting with the group, you can find them through email at enqwilt@gmail.com.