News : Vinton-Shellsburg Honors Benton County Veterans in Style

Rita Moore presents her 104th Quilt of Valor to Dr. Kyle Song in appreciation for his service in Afghanistan

Each Veterans Day, or the day closest to Veterans Day, the Vinton Shellsburg Community School District holds the most amazing event. The Veterans Assembly is the highlight of the year for many reasons. 

One is of course the chance for all of the children in the district to pause and thank our local veterans. They prepare their songs and a program to honor the veterans. 

As the veterans stood to introduce themselves as well as talk a bit about their service, some were moved to tears as they thanked those who participated in organizing the time of recognition. 

Each year there is a Quilt of Valor presented to a veteran who has served. Rita Moore presented her 104th handmade quilts to Dr. Kyle Song. Dr. Song serves the community at Virginia Gay Hospital. He is a veteran whose service included a deployment with the Army from 2001-2015. He was deployed to Afghanistan as a medic following the 9/11 attack.

The quilt is lovingly made by a volunteer and presented to the veteran to provide comfort to the veteran as a way of thanking them for their service. The quilt was presented along with Moore by Jeanette Henry.  

The program can be seen here.

To see all the photos, click here. Special thank you to Bethany Gates for the photos!