The Quilts of Valor Foundation (QOV) is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring veterans through the art of quilting. Founded in 2003 by Catherine Roberts, the idea started when her son was deployed in Iraq. The movement quickly took off with the goal to recognize and honor those who have served in the U.S. military with a handmade quilt. Since its inception, over 327,000 quilts have been awarded to veterans, transforming fabric into heartfelt tokens of gratitude.
Orchard’s Director of Integration, Wendy Forgey, has been involved with QOV for several years. “My mom has been making quilts for QOV for many years. I have helped here and there when time permits and my mom needs help,” Forgey said. Forgey eventually joined the Baca County Chapter and has awarded over 400 quilts to veterans and service members. Creating a Quilt of Valor is a collaborative effort in the group where some members will piece the tops while others will quilt and bind the pieces together. Each quilt takes at least 15-20 hours to complete.
This year, Orchard recognized the following employees with a Quilt of Valor:
- Kenneth Dawson, manager of customer advocacy
- Nathan Chapman, senior financial analyst
- Damien Stone, systems and integration engineer
- Robert Morant, cloud security program manager
“It has been an honor to be able to present our veterans here at Orchard Software with a QOV, and to be able to not only tell them ‘Thank you for your service’ but to also show them with a quilt how much we appreciate them,” Forgey said.