Photo by Samantha Davis: Quilts of Valor state coordinator Janet Knafla (left) visits with Eileen Fuhrmann (right) of Pieces for Heroes while she sews a quilt during a visit Monday afternoon.

MARSHALL — There was a lot to recognize for the Marshall chapter of Quilts of Valor, Pieces for Heroes, Monday afternoon. Along with a visit from the state coordinator, Pieces for Heroes received a donation from the Marshall American Legion Post 113, and honored two of its volunteers for their years of support.

Quilts of Valor state coordinator, Janet Knafla, made her first ever visit to Marshall to meet the team and volunteers that represent the entire southwest region of the state.

“I’m loving checking this out. I learn something new every time I go to a different place. They (Pieces for Heroes) have a phenomenal, phenomenal shop here,” Knafla said. “I’m here to support them in any way that I can. Any issues, if they need help with fundraising or just bouncing ideas off of each other.”

Knafla said Minnesota has 16 Quilts of Valor groups, which is a national organization that honors service members and veterans with handmade quilts. The quilts are known to serve as tokens of appreciation by offering comfort, gratitude and healing.

Marshall’s Pieces for Heroes was established in 2017, and represents the southwest area.

“My job is to coordinate. (The) National (organization) drops down the nominations to me, then they drop down to the state,” Knafla said. “My job is to identify where they’re located, and who the closest group is that can do the presentation.”

Knafla made her trip from the Twin Cities area, where she also works as a quilter with her local group.

“It’s fun,” Knafla said. “People are very, very willing to work with you, and the veterans’ stories are amazing.”

Nancy McClain, Pieces for Heroes representative, said the Marshall group has made and gifted around 450 quilts since its 2017 start.

But, Marshall’s Quilts of Valor success is done with the hands of several volunteers and local support through time of sewing quilts and donations.

Bruce Fuhrmann and Dale Schroeder of the Marshall American Legion Post 113 presented Pieces for Heroes with a $5,000 donation check Monday afternoon, that will continue supporting the group with necessary equipment and supplies for quiltmaking.

The Legion also allows the group to use their space two Mondays a month dedicated to quilt making.

McClain said the group also recently received another anonymous donation, and it’s been nice to see local support that goes back into honoring area veterans.

“The feelings that you get when you give to the veterans, they have a good time,” McClain said. “Right now on our list, we have about 50 quilts to give, and the nominations just keep coming in.”

McClain also noted that Pieces for Heroes had a trend of gifting around 60 quilts a year the last four years, but the group will surpass over 100 this year.

The group of sewers were hard at work Monday afternoon at the Legion office, while Knafla made her way around the room to visit.

Heather Rokeh and Michelle Salfer in particular, co-owners of Graceful Marilyn Quilt Shoppe in Marshall, were surprised when McClain called out the duo to receive a Certificate of Appreciation for the time and resources they help support the group with.

“We have two perfect ladies (Rokeh and Salfer) in the front of us, who have helped us tremendously make our mission work,” McClain said as she handed over the certificate. “We’re here to give you an appreciation … You’re always willing. Day, night, weekend, whenever I call.”

The two received their certificate in front of the entire group, who applauded them on.

“We adore this quilt shop,” McClain said. “They offer a variety of high-quality fabrics for patriotic quilts and others. They are our go-to-choice for quality, expertise and their family friendly environment.”

Rokeh and Salfer, who are sisters, opened up the quilt shop four years ago, which is inspired by their mother, Marilyn Schmidt, detailed on the shop’s website. The two have fond memories of their mother sewing projects, before they started getting involved around 7 years old.

“Our shop opened in 2021, so we’ve been supporting them (Pieces for Heroes) from the beginning,” Salfer said.

The Graceful Marilyn Quilt Shoppe helps with sewing machine repairs and quilting services, and they also have a longarm machine at the shop.

Those looking to support or get involved with Marshall’s Quilts of Valor chapter can do so through either time or donations.

“If (people) want to support Quilts of Valor, donating monetary donations is a great way … Maybe purchasing a gift certificate or something, then we can keep those on file so they can use them when they need things,” Rokeh said. “If people are looking to help make quilts, obviously we can connect them with Nancy and the group here … (We can) give them a nomination form if they know somebody (to nominate for a quilt), we have those at the shop, too.”

The Quilts of Valor national organization first got its start in 2003 founded by Catherine Roberts, inspired by her son’s deployment to Iraq.