We had the privilege of honoring two heroes! Husband and wife, Richard & Wanda Cooley, both U.S. Navy Veterans, were each presented with a Quilt of Valor. These are handmade, one-of-a-kind quilts honoring their service to our country.

Richard enlisted in the Navy in 1969 after graduation from high school. As he says, “I didn’t know what I wanted to do for a living and thought the Navy may help me”. Even though he couldn’t swim, he went for it. “Still can’t swim today”, he says with a laugh. The lesson – don’t let anything stop you from doing what you want. At the time of his retirement in 1992, Richard had reached the rank of Chief Petty Officer (E7).

Wanda was looking for a way to pay for college when she came across information on the GI Bill, so the Navy it was! She enlisted in 1973 with the idea of paying for college, “who knew I’d continue until 2001, granted there were breaks within that timeframe”, she says. She was a Storekeeper which entailed ordering supplies, keeping inventory, and conducting audits. Ultimately, she reached the rank Command Master Chief Petty Officer (E9). At the time of retirement, she was a reservist.

They met while both stationed at Long Beach, California’s Naval Supply Depot. The depot is no longer active, but their love and humor are in abundance! Wanda was chuckling as she shared “He liked me, but I made him work for it’, at this, Richard smiled.

While their reasons for enlisting were different – one looking for direction; the other with a clear direction of college (she earned her BS in Accounting), their dedication to their country was unwavering. And because of that dedication, we thank them. Thank you, Wanda & Richard, veterans of the U.S. Navy, for your dedicated service to your country.

Quilts of Valor honors veterans with a quilt as a token of our appreciation for their service. The quilts are made by volunteers across the country. Some quilts are completed by one sewer; others are touched by many loving hands, but all are presented with pride and thanks. Quilts of Valor honor veterans in the United States, Canada, and Australia.

Quilts of Valor (QOV) is an organization that honors service members and veterans with a quilt to say, “Thank you for your service and sacrifice in serving our nation”. To date, more than 340,000 quilts have been presented to veterans. Quilts of Valor started in 2003. Learn more about Quilts of Valor at https://www.qovf.org/.