FLORIDA: 'The Piecemakers' ministry surrounds wounded veterans

September 08, 2009 [Episcopal News Service] St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Jacksonville, Florida, is hosting an exhibition September 8-9 of more than 40 quilts made for 31 wounded U.S. Armed Services veterans who will attend a spiritual retreat sponsored by the Diocese of Florida.

The quilt project is done in partnership with the Jacksonville-based Wounded Warrior Project, whose mission is to honor and empower wounded service men and women.

The quilts will be given to each of the soldiers who attend the September 11-13 retreat geared toward recreation and spiritual renewal for wounded veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan at the diocese's Camp Weed/Cerveny Conference Center in Live Oak, Florida.

St. Mark's Episcopal Church in the Ortega section of Jacksonville has been instrumental in the planning of this retreat and has spearheaded a diocesan-wide letter-writing campaign among its membership in order to thank and encourage the veterans who will attend the retreat. The church's quilt-making ministry, known as "The Piecemakers," has rallied Episcopalians throughout the diocese to make a quilt for each veteran's bed at the retreat. Each quilt artist has written a personal letter to the veteran who will receive it.

"When we first decided to do this, we were worried about being able to make 31 quilts in a short period of time," said Jan Harbeson, who leads The Piecemakers, "but we had such a great response from people throughout the diocese and even outside the Episcopal Church that we now have 41 quilts."

The Rev. David Killeen, associate rector of St. Mark's and retreat director, said: "The Piecemakers believe that quilt-making, which is a process of taking fragments of cloth and turning them into a work of art, is an ideal metaphor for spiritual wholeness and renewal. We pray that these beautiful quilts and the upcoming retreat can be a part of the healing process for each one of the Wounded Warriors."

The quilts were blessed on September 8 by Diocese of Florida Assisting Bishop Charles L. Keyser, who is the retired Episcopal bishop for the armed forces and a Vietnam War veteran. "The members of our Armed Forces come back from war with spiritual wounds, too, and the retreat, quilts and letters are all meant to help these brave wounded warriors experience spiritual healing and direction," he said. "God has moved powerfully through this ministry, and I pray the church continues to respond to the needs of these men and women who have so honorably served our nation."

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