Three years ago, with tremendous help from members of this board and my local guild, the supportive public of central Virginia, and some financial help from our local VA, we made and mailed 128 quilts from Virginia through an APO address to Farah, Afghanistan to cover a whole battalion with quilts that were a colorful "hug from home"....The Barracks Quilt Project.
No problems. They were well received and definitely gave the men happy faces in the photos they sent us. We used only 100% cotton fabrics and batting and the quilts were about 50" x 70" for their military cots. Our program was initiated by a request from an Army captain for his men, so I can see no problems with service personnel receiving these now.
Most of our recipients were very young men; they did not have the intimate personal attachment we quilters have for quilts. They just needed color and knowing that "someone somewhere" was thinking of them and caring. We knew many of these quilts would likely be left behind when they transferred home, or would be harshly used while in country. It didn't matter to us....the quilts were a gift sent as a "hug", not a chore for them to "take care of".
Jan in VA
Last edited by Jan in VA; 07-10-2014 at 11:44 AM.