THIS YOUNG AMERICAN IS MAKING A DIFFERENCE, VIDEO Operation Homefront Quilts
“It’s all about sacrifice,” explains 20-year-old Jessica Porter of Hudson, Florida. Americans who have paid the ultimate price in Iraq “have sacrificed everything to protect us. I just wanted to give their families something respectful in return.”
Johnathon Hartman, a hero not forgotten:
It’s been 14 months since Jonathan Hartman died in an ambush in Iraq. Hartman was only 27 years old.
“He was just a footprint or a stamp of regular hometown Americana,” says his mother Judy Hartman.
Jonathan was her only son. She’s carefully placed his memories inside a case in her home. There are dog tags, his medals and gifts from strangers.
“I’ve got notebooks full of cards and letters I received from people I’ve never met.”
It was another special delivery, a year after her son’s death, that made her realize her son is not forgotten, “I came home from work, got the mail and looked right in front of the door and there was this box. I thought ‘Gee! What is this box?'”
(You’ll have to watch the video to hear the rest!)
In May 2003, Jessica began spending 12 to 15 hours a day creating a memorial quilt for every family that has lost a loved one. Tragically, the list of families awaiting her quilts grows longer almost every day.
To reward her tireless commitment to Operation Homefront Quilt and ease her burden, APQS donated a new Millennium longarm quilting machine.
Each of Jessica’s quilts is approximately 40″ by 60″ and is mega stippled, which enables Jessica to finish 7 to 8 quilts per day on her longarm machine instead of just one on a regular sewing machine. Stipple quilting is one really long squiggle line that twists and turns but does not cross itself.
With your help, Jessica has already completed and sent more than 750 quilts to families as of October 2004.
To learn more on how you can support Jessica Porter and Operation Homefront Quilts visit this site HERE.
Update: (Friday AM) Powerline links to this wonderful story this morning. How I wish the news would play more segments like this one!