Nye County quilters honor 25 veterans with Quilts of Valor ceremony

Marine Corps veteran Steven Kennard and Air Force veteran Sherry Connors were among 25 Nye County veterans honored Saturday at the Bob Ruud Community Center in Pahrump, where the Nye County Valor Quilters turned stitches, fabric and patience into a public salute to military service.

The semi-annual Quilts of Valor presentation brought together veterans from the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force, each receiving a newly made quilt in front of family, friends and neighbors. The ceremony featured the Pahrump Valley High School Civil Air Patrol Color Guard posting the flags, while chapter member Zaria Morgan welcomed the crowd in place of group president Elba Rocha, who was out of town.

The program included a wide range of honorees, from Navy veteran Ronald DeAnda and Army veteran George Gallinari to Army veteran Angelica Musumeci, Navy veteran William Hill, Marine Corps veteran Donald Sharon Jr. and Army veteran Adam Groff. Gallinari also delivered the invocation, giving the gathering a personal note as well as a formal one.

The quilts themselves were part of what made the presentation resonate. Each was handmade by local volunteers, and each carried its own pattern, including patriotic red, white and blue designs. The group describes the work as a labor of love, with careful stitching meant to produce more than a keepsake: the quilts are intended to be wrapped around a veteran’s shoulders as a gesture of honor, comfort and respect.

For Pahrump, the ceremony has become a visible expression of gratitude that reaches beyond ceremony alone. More than two dozen veterans stood before a roomful of neighbors and received something tangible, stitched by local hands and offered as thanks for their service. In a county where public attention often goes to conflict and controversy, the quilt presentation put recognizable veterans at the center and gave the community a clear way to say that their service is seen, remembered and valued.