Girl Scout Troop 645 is working on freedom quilts to comfort injured soldiers

Byram - Nine members of Girl Scout Troop 645 are helping to make four Freedom Gratitude Quilts for soldiers injured in the war. They are collecting old blue jeans, washing them, cutting them into squares and then asking people to sign each square with a message of encouragement and thanks. The squares will then be sewn into quilts that will be sent to hospitals in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Girl Scouts hosted a “block signing” at Byram Day in September. Recently, they also hosted a block signing at Franklin Sussex Auto Mall in Sussex, as part of “Operation Gratitude.” It takes 96 squares to make each quilt. So far, the girls have collected enough quilt squares to make five complete quilts and they are working on a sixth. The Girl Scouts are working on the Girl Scout Silver Award, which is the highest award a girl in seventh through ninth grade can earn. They chose to help injured soldiers because the war has touched each of them in a personal way. The goal of these quilts it to help the soldiers who are injured to know that they are cared for and supported by the folks at home. The Girl Scouts are working with Operation: Quiet Comfort (www.operationquietcomfort.com), a program started in Michigan that has spread across the country. “Love the warrior, hate the war. We just want the injured soldiers to know that we care,” said Kelly Baron, a Girl Scout. In addition to Four Freedom Gratitude Quilts, Operation: Quiet Comfort collects toiletries, CD players, CDs, books and puzzles to send to the soldiers because, when they are admitted to a hospital, they have no personal items. As part of the Girl Scouts work for their Silver Award, they donated all of their Halloween candy to make Holiday treat bags for the soldiers as well.