Class of ‘64 gives quilts to thank veterans

Alan Greenman knew his former Austin High School classmates planned to honor him and his fellow veterans at their 50-year class reunion earlier this year. He just didn’t know what they were going to do.

As Greenman and several other Vietnam Veterans sat on stage, their classmates surprised them by bringing out quilts to cover each of them.

“It was pretty exciting and pretty special to be a part of that,” Greenman said.

As Austin and the nation gets ready to honor those who have served on Veterans Day Tuesday, Austin High School’s class of 1964 did its part earlier this year; however, many admitted the thank-you was long overdue.

Linda Olson helped organize a project to give the veterans in the Austin High School class of 1964 quilts through the Quilts of Valor program, a nationwide project which aims to recognize veterans and help them heal.

Olson and reunion committee members like Mike Ruzek thought it was important to recognize veterans at their 40th class reunion in September, especially since veterans of the Vietnam War were often met with mixed responses when coming back from a conflict stricken with controversy and mixed opinions at home.

“It was a long overdue thank you for serving our country,” Ruzek said.

Olson was closer than most to men serving in Vietnam. She lived with her husband, William, at Travis Air Force Base in California when he was stationed there during Vietnam, as part of a support team for planes headed to Vietnam.

Olson, who now splits time between Austin and Fort Meyers, Florida, has been making quilts through Quilts of Valor for about seven years. She’s made about 40 quilts, many of them for veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. But then she thought she could make them for her Austin classmates.

“It’s a pretty special thing for me to be able to do this for these men to finally be able to thank them for their service,” Olson said.

Meyer started making the quilts with a group in Florida. She had several more to make when she returned home to Austin, and the Congregational Church Dorcas Circle — which had crafted several Quilts of Valor before — was happy to help.

In all, Olson and other volunteers made about 35 to 40 quilts at the reunion, with the quilts being valued at about $200 each. The quilts were funded through some donations, and Olson and other quilters bought much of the material themselves. The committee also presented a $2,000 check to Quilts of Valor.

When the veterans committee thanked the veterans at the reunion, many like Linda Meyer remember it as an emotional experience.

“People just thought it was the most awesome thing and there wasn’t a dry eye in the place,” she said.

Ruzek agreed.

“Wow, what an emotional experience,” he said. “There were a lot of tears flowing.”

Vietnam veteran Larry Anderson was glad to receive a quilt. Although he knew about the quilts because he was on the planning committee, he said most of the veterans were very surprised about the gesture.

“It was a very emotional thing,” Anderson said. “When we returned from Vietnam we weren’t greeted very well. So this was kind of a nice gesture, it kind of overwhelmed some of them.”

Others like Greenman were surprised and honored when their classmates brought the quilts out.

“I knew they were going to do something for the veterans but I didn’t have any idea what they were going to do,” he said.

A veteran of the Vietnam War, Greenman was excited for the special occasion. His quilt has many different colors, including red, blue and white.

“It’s a nice big quilt. It’s beautiful,” he said.

Each quilt looked different, and Anderson’s was patterned in red and white and had the Army signature in the middle.

“So it’s kind of an army quilt,” he said.

He had hoped to hang it on a wall for everyone to see and enjoy, but due to a lack of wall space, he plans to use it during the colder seasons.

“I’m probably just going to use it and appreciate it,” Anderson said.

He was very appreciative of the makers of the quilts, both in Florida and in Minnesota.

“I’m sure it takes a lot of work to build the quilts, it was pretty good, pretty outstanding,” he said.

Meyer remembers one veteran telling her about losing hundreds of men a week in Vietnam, and he added the quilt would always be a special memory to him. Ruzek remembered the veterans being appreciative and leaving with their quilts held tightly under their arms.

“One thing that struck me was just the emotional reaction of these guys in being thanked,” Ruzek said. “I really didn’t expect the high level of emotion. These guys were saying, ‘My goodness, thank you. It means a lot.”

The class of 1964 may only be the beginning, as Olson said other Austin and Pacelli classes now plan to honor their veterans in a similar way.