- October 21, 2021
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GROUP PRESENTATION: The Prairie Point Quilt Club presented Quilts of Valor to local veterans on Oct. 16, at the Ashland VFW. Pictured are (front row, from left) Tim Decker, Lynn Beason, Ted Tucker, Gary Krings, Larry Thomas, Robert Voss, Patricia South Williams, Robert Craven, Keith “Pat” Stewart; (back row) Paul Nielson, Wilson Metz, Richard Ott, Gary Love, Dick Thiem and Don Moore.
INDIVIDUAL PRESENTATION: Floyd “Buster” Roberts is presented with a Quilt of Valor as a thank you for his military service on Oct. 15, by Linda Roeber and Shari Styskal. Pictured are (from left) Judy Roberts, Buster Roberts and Linda Roeber.
ASHLAND – Members of the Prairie Point Quilt Club have been busy lately finishing handmade, patriotic quilts to present to 16 local veterans during presentations last weekend through the Quilts of Valor Foundation.
Since its founding in 2003 by Blue Star mother Catherine Roberts, over 280,000 quilts have been presented to veterans of military actions, conflicts, and wars, including World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Iraq War and military actions in Beirut and Afghanistan. They are a symbol of gratitude and appreciation, sewn with care by local quilters, to thank the veterans for their service and sacrifice.
Floyd “Buster” Roberts received his Quilt of Valor on Saturday, Oct. 15 from Prairie Point Quilt Club members Linda Roeber and Shari Styskal. Roberts served in Vietnam, where he received numerous medals, including the Bronze Star with oak leaf cluster, Purple Heart with oak leaf cluster, Army Commendation Medal, Air Medal, Vietnamese Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Commendation Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Parachutist’s Badge and Combat Infantry Badge. He also received a second Purple Heart. He served in the 196th Light Infantry Brigade of the Americal Division.
The following veterans were awarded Quilts of Honor during a ceremony on Sunday, Oct. 16 at the VFW Hall in Ashland. They are listed in alphabetical order.
Lynn Beeson began his military career in 1970. He sent to basic training at Ft. Leonard Wood, Mo.. After heavy equipment operator training, he served in Southeast Asia for one year, followed by time in Germany and later at Ft. Riley, Kan. He was honorably discharged in 1972.
Robert Craven joined the US Navy on Aug. 21, 1961. After training as an aviation electrician, he was assigned to Air Development Squadron Four and went on a 10-day training mission cruise on aircraft carriers USS Oriskany, USS Ticonderoga and USS Ranger. He then served at Anderson Four US Naval Air Station in Point Migu, Calif. He was discharged from active duty in 1964 and served in the Navy Reserves.
Tim Decker joined the Marine Corps three weeks after graduating from high school. Although he was told he would be working in motor transport, he ended up in food service. He was honorably discharged in 1974 as a private first class.
Gary Krings enlisted in the US Army in March 11, 1969. He spent 15 months in Mannhein, Germany as a truck mechanic and wrecker operator. He earned the National Defense Medal Expert M-14. He was honorably discharged March 2, 1971 with the rank of E-5.
Gary Love joined the US Army Reserves in 1988. After training as a motor transport operator (truck driver), he served in active duty for Operation Desert Storm in 1990 with the 172nd Transportation Company in Omaha. He was stationed in Saudi Arabia near the Kuwait border. He received a field grade promotion to sergeant and returned from deployment in April 1991. He was transferred to the 308th Transportation Unit in Lincoln. He completed his service in 1996.
Wilson Metz was in the US Marine Corps form 1967 to 1971. He was stationed in Parris Island, S.C. for basic training, Jacksonville, Fla. at Aviation Ordnance School, Beaufort, S.C. for Ordnance Magazine Facility (bombs, rockets, etc.), in Kaneohe, Hawaii as a Phantom F-4J Squadron aircraft weapons tech, he went to Leadership School in Okinawa, Japan and then was assigned to Havelock, N.C., where he served again as an aircraft weapons tech for a Phantom F-4J squadron.
Don Moore entered Army basic training in February 1970. He served out his enlistment and after a four-year break, reenlisted in the Army Reserves, retiring after 35 years of service total. His duty stations included Ft. Knox, Ky., Ft. Riley, Kan., Germany and South Korea. He was deployed to Iraq from 2004 to 2005. His job assignments included cavalry scout, armor crewman, drill sergeant, track commander, platoon sergeant, first sergeant, operations sergeant major and command sergeant major for two battalions and two group commands.
Paul Nielson began basic training on Sept. 11, 2000 for the US Army at Ft. Jackson, S.C. He also did his Advanced Individual Training (AIT) there, where he trained as a mechanic. He was stationed at Fort Omaha. Two days after 9/11, Nielson was sent to New York City for two weeks to help with the cleanup at the World Trade Center. He was deployed to Iraq multiple times. He received a medical discharge with the rank of E-4.
Richard Ott enlisted in the Army right out of high school in 1966. He went to Panama and then to Vietnam. He was discharged in 1968, and six years later he joined the National Guard, serving for 34 years. He retired in 2007 as a master sergeant.
Keith “Pat” Stewart first put on a U.S. Army uniform in January 1951 at the age of 18. He was sent to Ft. Benning, Ga. for basic training and cooking school. He was sent to Camp Conley, Ga. for a short time before being shipped to Korea. He was in Korea for over a year attached to the Fifth Regimental Combat Team on the front line. After Korea he worked in the bakery at Camp Carson Hospital in Colorado Springs until he was discharged as a corporal in 1954.
Dick Thiem volunteered for the draft shortly after high school. Right before basic training, he learned that his brother, Bill, had died in Vietnam at the age of 20. He went to Ft. Ord, Calif. for basic training and after AIT he was sent to Pobwon-ni, South Korea for 13 months. Although trained in infantry, he was assigned to an artillery battery to serve guard duty at a weapons depot about four miles south of the demilitarized zone. He earned the rank of E-4 halfway through his tour.
After Larry Thomas received his draft notice, he went to a US Navy recruiting station to sign up for the 120-day delay program. He left for boot camp on Jan. 31, 1966. His first duty station was on the USS Charles Berry, which had its home port at Pearl Harbor. He was reassigned to the USS Carpenter where he was a barber. He also served on two West Pacific cruises on the USS Davidson, where he was petty officer in charge of the lower ammunition handling room. He also ran the ship’s story and laundry. He left the Navy on April 30, 1969 with the rank of E-5, second class ships serviceman.
Ted Tucker served in the US Navy for four years, beginning in 1969. He attended boot camp in San Diego, Calif. In July 1969, he was transferred to Long Beach, Calif. as part of a commissioning crew of the USS Hepburn, where he served on the deck. He did two tours in Vietnam, providing offshore gunfire and pilot rescue in the Gulf of Tonkin. He was transferred from active duty to inactive Naval Reserve on Nov. 2, 1972. He joined the Nebraska National Guard on Dec. 10, 1974 and served for three years.
Robert Voss started Navy boot camp in January 1968 and was sent to the Marine Corps Armory to learn firearms repair and test firing. He was assigned to cryptologic technician maintenance and electronics school. He was also trained in basic HVAC maintenance, specialized high frequency receiver training and transmitter school. He worked with the Naval Security Group before being transferred to Skaggs Island, Calif. where his job was to detect opposing forces’ radio transmissions, decode them and triangulate their exact position. He spent two and a half years in Morocco, where he passed his E-6 test and became third in command while taking care of communication maintenance and encrypting CIA traffic messages for the Mediterranean and Middle East. In 1975 he was transferred to Winter Harbor, Maine, where he was in charge of a small calibration lab and working on IBM computers that monitored overseas telephone cables. He was discharged in 1977 after nine years of service, earning the National Service Medal and Good Conduct (two stars) Medal.
Patricia South Williams enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps on May 9, 1966, one year after high school graduation. She went to Parris Island, S.C. for boot camp. As a woman in the Marines in 1966, Williams said her job was “relieving men of their desk jobs for assignment to Vietnam.” After boot camp she reported to Naval Air Station Memphis/Millington, Tenn. to train as a marine aviation operations clerk. She was assigned to Marine Corps Air Facility at Quantico, Va., where she worked in flight clearance. She was discharged on Nov. 4, 1968 as a lance corporal.
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GROUP PRESENTATION: The Prairie Point Quilt Club presented Quilts of Valor to local veterans on Oct. 16, at the Ashland VFW. Pictured are (front row, from left) Tim Decker, Lynn Beason, Ted Tucker, Gary Krings, Larry Thomas, Robert Voss, Patricia South Williams, Robert Craven, Keith “Pat” Stewart; (back row) Paul Nielson, Wilson Metz, Richard Ott, Gary Love, Dick Thiem and Don Moore.
INDIVIDUAL PRESENTATION: Floyd “Buster” Roberts is presented with a Quilt of Valor as a thank you for his military service on Oct. 15, by Linda Roeber and Shari Styskal. Pictured are (from left) Judy Roberts, Buster Roberts and Linda Roeber.
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