BROKEN BOW, Neb.— Kelvin Dowse, Martin Shafer, and Bernard Nichols were all presented Quilts of Valor this past weekend during a ceremony at the Veterans Building in Broken Bow.
With a mission of covering service members and veterans touched by war with comforting and healing quilts, the Quilts of Valor Foundation shares their gratitude, respect, and admiration during each of their quilt presentations. That same expression was given Saturday, alongside words expressing the hope that the quilts bring comfort, warmth, and the knowledge that their service is remembered and appreciated.
Below are the words delivered ahead of each Quilts of Valor presentation from Teri Buhlmann and Kim Stein:
The first veteran that we honor is Kelvin Dowse. Kelvin served in the United States Army from December 1957 until December 1960. He was in for 2 years, 11 months, and 14 days according to him. Kelvin did his basic training at Fort Carson, Colorado and then reported to Fort Lewis, Washington before being sent to Korea by ship. His MOS (or Military Occupational Specialty) was engineering. Kelvin put this to good use when he was in Korea as he drove heavy equipment that crushed rocks for roads. Kelvin was honorably discharged from Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri in 1960 with a rank of E-5. Thank you for your service, Kelvin!
Our next veteran is Martin Shafer. Martin served in the United states Army from 1971 until 1974. He served during the Vietnam era and was sent to Augsburg, Germany. Martin was a teletype intercept operator with the Army Security Agency. Martin was honorably discharged with the rank of SP-4 in 1974. Thank you for your service Martin!
Our third veteran is Bernard Nichols. Bernard served in the United States Army from 1965 to 1967. He served during the Vietnam era and was stationed stateside. Bernard served with the 2nd Battalion Artillery. It was the Army’s largest missile battalion. He was in the AMD section, which assembled the stages of the mission before firing. Bernard was honorably discharged in 1967 with the rank of E-5. Thank you for your service, Bernard!
