In 2003, Catherine Roberts of Seaford, DE, started the Quilts of Valor Foundation when her son and his 630th MP Company were being deployed from Germany to Iraq for one year. She was thrown into a group of other Americans who send their loved one into harm’s way. She started the group by appealing to both quilt-toppers and the longarming group to volunteer their fabric, their talents and time to make wartime quilts of valor that would comfort our wounded. Presently, our Quilts of Valor community has delivered over 15,000 quilts. We are only one of many that make quilts to comfort our wounded and the families who have lost their loved one in this war on terror.

The mission of the QOV Foundation is to cover ALL wounded and injured service members from the War on Terror, whether physical or psychologically, with wartime quilts called Quilts of Valor (QOV). QOVF-UM covers the Upper Midwestern states of Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin and is part of the national Quilts of Valor Foundation.  If you know of someone who should receive a QOV, please contact us.

Make a finished QOV and bring it to your local QOV Drop Spot. QOV should be a minimum size of 50" x 60" (maximum size 72" x 96") and quilted, either by hand or machine. It should include a label (with the name of the piecer, the quilter and a line for the recipient's name) and a presentation pillowcase. Click here for quilt and pillowcase patterns. It is also nice to include a hand or typed message to the soldier. They really appreciate the thanks and encouragement.

Piecers: Make a quilt top and include the backing, binding, pillowcase and preferably the label (see above). Don't worry about batting and quilting - we have machine quilters who volunteer to do that part. Details

Quilters: Machine or hand quilt a QOV top. Contact one of the Upper Midwest QOV Coordinators if you are willing to volunteer. Details

Donate funds to the QOV non-profit foundation to offset the costs of making and shipping the QOVs to military hospitals. Or, donate fabrics to your local QOV group.