Seven local veterans were honored for their years of military service with handmade quilts on Oct. 19 at the Lodge at Sherwood Village by a group of quilters know as the “Grateful Grannies.”

The Grannies are a group of about 12 quilters who are a local chapter of the Quilts of Valor, a nationwide 501 (c)(3) not-for-profit foundation that has donated quilts to veterans each year since 2003.

Barbara Hughes, a presenter of the quilts and a member of the Grannies, said these quilts represent “appreciation of sacrifice and the service veterans give us.”

“We have a lot of veterans (in Sequim) and we want to take care of the veterans close to us,” Hughes said.

This year’s recipients included: Jeanne Yoder, a U.S. Coast Guard veteran; Monte Mogi, a Vietnam War and U.S. Air Force veteran; Robert Stipe, a 20-year U.S. Army veteran; Gary Parr, a U.S. Navy veteran; James Vanwert, a U.S. Army veteran; Jack Nuszbaum, a veteran who served in the Army Signal Corps, and Harold Smith, a U.S. Navy veteran starting his service in WWII.

The Grannies get together once a month to start a quilt with one block of fabric, and then pass it on to other quilters to quilt more blocks until a full quilt is complete. Each veteran received an individual quilt that reflected his or her service.

“We all love what we do and it’s a pleasure to make them,” Hughes said.

Since its inception, Quilts of Valor volunteers have awarded 198,821 quilts nationwide, with about 1,186 so far in October.

For more information about the Quilts of Valor Foundation, visit www.qovf.org/.

This year’s Quilts of Valor recipients, from left, Gary Parr, Monte Mogi, James Vanwert, Robert Stipe and Jack Nuszbaum (not pictured, Jeanne Yoder and Herald Smith) are local veterans honored for their years of military service. The quilts are made by 12 local volunteers known as the “Grateful Grannies” who each take turns making a part of the quilts. Sequim Gazette photo by Erin Hawkins