Fire trucks rolled down Dolphin Street in front of Petersburg’s Rae C. Stedman Elementary School Monday for the community’s Veterans Day celebration.
The Veterans Day parade in Petersburg is organized by the school district. Each year kids and school staff come out to honor veterans. And each year, a few veterans receive handmade quilts as a thank you for their service to their country.
This year, the street was lined with kids holding hand-drawn signs, and some squealed each time a fire engine’s siren wailed. When the long line of cars and trucks briefly paused, kids darted into the street to pass out homemade cards.
“I think it’s great that our kids get the opportunity to come and think about the sacrifice that others have been willing to make for them and think about themselves as members of a broader community,”said Tim Shumway, a Petersburg High School English and Social Studies teacher.
Along with the fire engines and police trucks, most of the parade was made up of veterans in their own vehicles. They waved at the kids, smiling and taking thank you notes. They slowly made their way down the block-long parade route toward the high school band.
The parade paused near a table of quilts, all patriotic colors in calicos and swirled batiks. The town’s quilting guild, the Raincountry Quilters, works on them all year long as part of a nationwide program called Quilts of Valor.
Longtime guild member Susan Flint was helping hand out the quilts, wrapping them around the shoulders of veterans. She said her message to each person is simply “thank you.”
“Quilts of valor, in appreciation for all you have sacrificed for our country. Please accept this gift with our deepest gratitude,” she said, reading the inscription that’s printed on each quilt.
Petersburg resident Diane Benson watched as her husband, a veteran, received his quilt. She was choked up, and said the parade brings up a lot.
“With service, whether it’s Vietnam, or Iraq, or other places, when you have family that serves, the whole family serves,” she said. “We forget about that, and it’s hard to do something like this sometimes, because it really brings back memories.”
She said it’s good to see the community supporting veterans.
“It really touched me. It reminded me of when my son came back from Iraq and after he was able to get out and about – because we almost lost him,” she said. “But in Colorado, they really gave a welcome and honor, and so to be in a community like this in Alaska, where we live, is really, really nice.”
Petersburg resident Ruth Johnson watched as her dad was wrapped in a quilt. She and her small children and siblings r all crowded in for a photo with him.
“It just makes me really happy to see people appreciate what he did,” she said. “And you know, there’s a big story behind it all. He has a lot of stories from when he was in the service.”
Veteran Ryan Mumby got emotional as the quilt was draped around his shoulders.
“In all reality, I don’t deserve this,” he said. “The guys who aren’t here deserve this. But it’s an honor, and I really don’t have much else I can say without…choking up.”
But he grinned through his tears.
“This is huge,” he said. “This is huge. Made my day. Made my year, really.”
He said he planned to put the quilt up on his wall the minute he got home.
