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These quilts have been presented to Minnesota families.
Another web site that lists all U. S. soldiers is
In remembrance.
(You can
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Spc. Carlos Wilcox, a member of the Minnesota National
Guard, was 27 years old when he died on July 16, 2009 after
his base in Basra, Iraq had been attacked. Carlos’ hope was
to attend the Army’s medical school, and with that training
planned to make the Army a career. Carlos liked to travel
and attended college, receiving a degree in biology. Carlos
and his three siblings were raised by their mother after
their father died when he was seven years old. This quilt
went to Carlos’ mother, Charlene Wilcox, of Cottage Grove,
MN. |
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Spc. James David Wertish died on July 16, 2009, at age 20,
when his base in Basra, Iraq was attacked by a missile. James graduated
from high school in 2007 and had joined the Minnesota
National Guard in February 2006. He worked on his family
farm and enjoyed riding snowmobiles and all-terrain
vehicles. James is survived by his parents, two sisters and
a brother. This quilt was given to James' parents, David and
Kim Wertish, of Olivia, MN |
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CW3 Philip E. Windorski, Jr. was 36 years old at the time he
died on January 26, 2009, in Kirkuk, Iraq, when two OH-58D
Kowa Warrior helicopters crashed. He was a 1991 graduate of
Grand Rapids High School and enlisted in the Army after
graduation. Philip was on his third tour of duty in Iraq and
had also deployed to Bosnia for five months following the
terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. After 17 years in
the Army, he was close to potential retirement but was
considering reenlisting. Although Philip’s passion was
flying helicopters, his greatest joy was spending time with
his wife and children. Philip is survived by his wife, a son
and daughter, a step-daughter, mother and two brothers. This
quilt was given to his wife Karin Windorski and children who
live in Florida. |
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Spc. Randy W. Pickering, age 31 of Bovey, MN died on
December 9, 2007, in Bagdad, Iraq, of injuries from a
non-combat-related incident. Randy joined the Army in the
summer of 2007 and was on his first deployment when he died.
He came from a military family--his grandfather and his
father were both in the Air Force. Randy had a college
degree in computer programming. Video games and comics were
an important part of his life. A talented artist, he dreamed
of illustrating comic books. He is survived by his father,
mother, siblings, nieces and nephews. This quilt was given
to Randy’s father, Bruce Pickering, of Mason, MI. |
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This quilt was given to the mother of Spc. Randy W.
Pickering, Sheila Pickering, of Belton, MO. |
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Spc. Dwayne James McFarlane, Jr., age 20, of Cass Lake,
Minn., died January 9, 2005 in Baghdad, Iraq, when his
dismounted patrol was hit by an improvised explosive device.
He was assigned as a fire support specialist. Dwayne was
behind enemy lines in Iraq even before the U.S. bombing
began. Twice he had come home to Minnesota, and twice he had
gone back to Iraq. He was on his third deployment at the
time of his death. Dwayne was a 2002 graduate of Cass Lake-Bena
High School, where he was on the basketball and track teams.
The 2000-01 basketball team went to the state tournament.
The summer Dwayne graduated from high school, he decided to
enlist in the Army: he hoped to go to college after he
left the Army. Dwayne was raised by his aunt and uncle from
an early age and considered them his parents. This quilt was
given to his parents Don Bellanger and Alvera Reyes of Cass
Lake, MN. |
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Cpl. Travis Robert Bruce, age 22, of Rochester, MN died
March 23, 2005, in Baghdad, Iraq, when an enemy mortar round
detonated near his guard position. Travis graduated from
high school in 2002 and joined the Army the following
September. He wanted to be a military police officer. Travis
served two tours of duty in Iraq. Travis is survived
by his father Kenneth, mother Victoria, and sisters Tonya
and Kim. This quilt was given to Victoria Bruce of
Rochester, MN. |
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Cpl. Travis Robert Bruce frequently visited his father in
Vancouver, Washington, and was stationed nearby at Ft Lewis,
WA. Travis’ father is retired military; he talked with his
father about making the military a career just two days
before he died. This quilt was given to his father, Kenneth
Bruce. |
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Pfc. Anthony “Tony” Hebert, age 19, died June 21, 2007, in
Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an IED exploded near
his vehicle. Four other soldiers were casualties also. Tony
graduated high school in 2005 in Lake City, MN. After high
school Tony joined the Army; after basic training he was
stationed in Germany. In August of 2006 Tony was deployed to
Iraq. He was looking forward to a career in law enforcement
or firefighting after completing his military career, This
quilt was given to Tony’s parents, Bob and Laurie Hebert of
Lake City, MN. |
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Sgt. Jonathan Manea was home on leave from his deployment in
Afghanistan when he died August 6, 2009 at the age of 26
years. Jonathan was an EOD Specialist with the 764th ORD CO
(EOD), 242nd ORD BN (EOD), Fort Carson, CO. He was third
generation military who loved serving his country. Previous
to his deployment in Afghanistan Jon served for six months
in Iraq. In high school Jon played football, was a pole
vaulter on the track team and was a member of the Math
League. After high school, he attended the South Dakota
School of Mines, before joining the Army in February 2004.
Jon is survived by his parents and three children. This
quilt was presented to Jon’s parents, Scott and Peg Manea,
of Rice, MN. |
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As a
divorced father,
Sgt. Jonathan Manea spent as much of his leave time as
possible with his children and stepdaughter and came home to
Minnesota as often as he could. This quilt was given to the
children, Suzan, Logan and Luca who live with their mother
in Watkins, MN. |
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Sgt. Jesse Lhotka was 24 years old when he died from a
roadside bomb in Baghdad, Iraq, February 21, 2005. Jesse was born in Appleton,
MN and graduated from Lac Qui Parle High School where he
played football and was class president. Jesse was credited
with saving the life of a fellow soldier whose Humvee had
flipped, and had just helped evacuate another soldier when
he was killed along with two other National Guard members
from Minnesota. Since the age of 14 Jesse helped his single
mother raise his five younger siblings. Beverly Lhotka,
Jesse’s mother, called him the best big brother. This quilt
was given to Beverly Lhotka of Appleton, MN. |
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Sgt. Jesse Lhotka
met his wife Stacey on a blind date through a fellow Guard
member serving with him in Iraq. Jesse bonded with his
father-in-law easily and did things with him that he had not
done with his own father. Before Jesse and Stacey were
married, Stacey’s dad and Jesse spent about 4 hours talking
about the ins and outs of marriage with the possibility of
deployment in the near future. Jesse and Stacey were married
September 18, 2004 – just five months before he died. This
quilt was presented to Stacey Lhotka of Alexandria, MN. |
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Sgt. Noah Pierce died on July 26, 2007, at the age of 23
years, after serving deployments in Kuwait and Iraq with the
Army’s Third Infantry Division, before returning home in
2006. Noah joined the Army in 2002 and was planning a third
deployment. Noah wrote about his experiences and feelings
about his deployments which his mother has had copyrighted.
This quilt went to Noah’s mother, Cheryl Softich of Eveleth,
MN. |
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Sean A. Osterman, age 21 years, of Princeton, MN was injured
on December 14, 2010, while conducting combat operations in
Helmand Province, Afghanistan. He died on December 16, 2010
at a hospital in Germany. Sean joined the Marines in July
2007 and was serving his second deployment in Afghanistan
where his unit had been for just a few weeks. Sean is
survived by his father, mother and four siblings. This quilt
was given to Sean's mother, Kelly Hugo, of Princeton, MN. |
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Captain Kelly Hinz, age 30 of Woodbury, MN died May 2, 2005
in a plane crash over Iraq.
The oldest of four boys, Kelly Hinz was a member of the
state champion alpine ski team at his military prep school
and came back after graduation to work as an assistant
coach. He attended the University of Colorado at Boulder and
graduated from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul in
1997 with a degree in business administration. He became a
private pilot and entered the Marines. His death, came nearly a year after his father, a former Navy
pilot, died in a World War II-era plane he was flying during
an air show in Wisconsin. One of Kelly’s brothers is also a
fighter pilot in the Marines and the other two have pilot’s
licenses. This quilt was given to his mother, Pat Hinz. |
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Capt. Kelly Hinz had been living in San Diego with his wife, Molly, and
their 7-month-old daughter, Abby. This quilt was given to
Molly and Abby. |
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SPC Seth Earl Zencius, age 23, of St Cloud, MN died
unexpectedly following surgery on June 14, 2010 at Ft Riley,
Kansas. After graduation from high school, he entered the US
Army and served two tours in Iraq. Seth was full of love for
his family and friends and was anxiously looking forward to
his wedding in August. He was extremely proud of his work in
the US Army and was to be deployed in September for his
third tour of duty in Iraq. Seth is survived by his fiance,
mother, father, a brother and two sisters and many other
family and friends. This quilt was presented to his mother,
Mary Brown, of Astoria, SD. |
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This quilt was presented to the father of
SPC Seth Earl Zencius, Bob Zencius, of St Cloud, MN. |
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This quilt was presented to the grandmother of
SPC Seth Earl Zencius, Elizabeth Smith, of Clearwater, MN. |
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Major Tad Hervas, age 48 years of Coon Rapids, MN, was a
casualty of the Iraq war on October 6, 2009. He joined the
Air Force ROTC while in college. After college he became a
lieutenant in the Air Force and served in the First Gulf
War. After his commission ended, Major Hervas returned to
civilian life. After 9/11 he felt compelled to join the
Minnesota National Guard out of love of country. He was
deployed to Iraq in 2004 and redeployed to Iraq in 2009.
Major Hervas was a well decorated officer, receivng many
medals and awards for his service to country. He enjoyed
hunting, fishing, cooking, sports and dogs. Tad was survived
by his mother and father, 4 brothers, one sister and many
other relatives and friends. Tad’s father passed away on
Memorial Day, May 30, 2010.
This quilt was presented to Tad’s mother, Barb Hervas. |
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Sgt. Kurt E. Kruize of St. Cloud enlisted in the Army
Reserve during his junior year in high school, and had
served an 11-month tour in Iraq in 2003. While on his second
deployment to Iraq, he died April 4, 2010 in Baghdad, in a
non-combat-related accident at the age of 35. The quilt
blocks were made by five students from Kimball (MN) High
School. The quilt was presented to his wife and four
children. |
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This quilt was presented to the parents of Sgt. Kurt E. Kruize,
Lyle and Bev Kruize of Hancock, MN. |
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Pfc. Kham Xiong had been at Ft. Hood for five months
training for a deployment to Afghanistan when he was killed
in the tragic shooting there on November 5, 2009. He had
moved his wife Shoua Her and their three children there to
be near him as he trained. He is remembered as a great
friend, willing to help anyone and fun to be around. He is
survived by his parents, of St. Paul, and ten siblings. His
family has a tradition of serving in the military and one
brother is in Afghanistan now. |
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Pfc. Kham Xiong and his wife attended Community of Peace
Academy Charter school in St. Paul. The school dedicated a
memorial to him and this quilt was presented to his parents
at the ceremony of dedication. |
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Staff Sgt. Brian Studer was the fifth Minnesotan to die in
Afghanistan. He grew up in Ramsey and graduated from Elk
River HS. He chose to enter the Army rather than attend
college, and his service took him to Germany, S. Korea and
Iraq. He was close to coming home when he was killed by an
explosive device on August 22, 2008. His father's third
cousin made him this quilt in his son's honor. |
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John Bauer, of Pipestone, MN, achieved the highest rank of
Sgt. Major in the Minnesota National Guard. He originally
enlisted in Ortonville in 1982 and served in many units
during his long career. He was serving a deployment in Iraq
when he was diagnosed with cancer and died at home on Nov.
24, 2005 at the age of 42. He is survived by his wife and
two sons. This quilt was given to his wife in Pipestone. |
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SGM Bauer was proud of the fact that he was serving beside
his nephew. He was in charge of operations at Camp Travis in
Iraq. He enjoyed all aspects of the Guard and planned to
complete his career there. This quilt was given to his
eldest son, a college student. |
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SGM Bauer also loved hunting pheasants and deer, fishing and
golfing. He is also survived by his parents, six brothers
and one sister, and many nieces and nephews. His younger son
is a high school student and was given this quilt. |
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Cpl. Benjamin Kopp was injured on July 10, 2009, and died on
the 18th at Walter Reed Hospital. He had been shot in combat
in Afghanistan. He was 21 and a graduate of Rosemount HS. He
worked on his fitness with wrestling and weight lifting in
high school, and loved everything outdoor. He is survived by
his mother who received this quilt, as well as by his father
and grandparents. |
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Sgt. Nicholas Turcotte grew up in Maple Grove, MN. He spent
many years with his grandparents there, after his parents
separated. After marrying his high school sweetheart, they
lived with them before deploying to Iraq with the Minnesota
National Guard. He died there at age 23, on February 4,
2006. His grandmother has been very active in assisting TAPS
in helping Gold Star families and was given this quilt to
honor Nicholas's sacrifice. |
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Navy MM1 Benjamin Farrell of Maplewood died due to a tragic
accident aboard the USS Ronald Reagan while being evacuated
for treatment on January 18, 2005. He was serving as a
mechanic to the nuclear plant on the ship and was scalded by
steam. His ship was bringing relief supplies to SE Asia
after the tsunami in Dec. 2004. His parents live in
Maplewood and were given this quilt. |
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Navy EN3 Daniel Otto, 19, died after a motorcycle accident
while driving to visit a comrade in the hospital on May 26,
2008. He was stationed in San Diego and was serving on the
USS Rushmore. He is survived by his father in Anchorage and
his mother and sisters of New Prague, MN. Daniel enlisted in
the Navy while a junior in high school. His oldest sister
was given this quilt. |
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Army Sgt. Jacob Pfingston died in Germany of a brain
aneurism on February 5, 2005. He had been sent there to
prepare and inspect helicopters being sent to Kosovo as part
of his duties with the Minnesota National Guard. He was
studying aeronautics at St. Cloud St. Univ. His mother and
step-father live in Maple Grove and received this quilt. |
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Air Force SSgt. Lathan Peterson was killed in a motocross
accident on July 6, 2007 in Dixon, CA. He had served a tour
in Iraq and was based at Travis Air Force Base and had
applied to train as a helicopter gunner. After his death he
was an organ donor and helped seven people. His mother lives
in Brainerd, and she accepted this quilt to remember him. |
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SSgt. Adam Sheda had just returned to his home after a very
long deployment in Iraq with the Minnesota National Guard,
when he was fatally shot in a struggle at a house party in
Duluth on June 30, 2007. He was an artist and had visited
Russia and supported an orphanage there. He was the youngest
of six children. His parents live in Wrenshall and were
given this quilt in his honor. |
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Army SSgt Todd Selge had just deployed for his second time
in Iraq when he was killed on Sept. 2, 2009 in a roll-over
accident in Baqubah, in which his vehicle dropped from a
bridge. He was with the 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team,
based in Ft. Lewis, WA. He was 25, and a loyal soldier. This
quilt was given to his parents In Burnsville, MN. |
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SSgt. Selge graduated in 2002 from Burnsville HS where he
met his classmate and future wife. They have two sons, and
the family has moved back to Burnsville. He wanted to assure
the Iraqi people of the same freedoms he enjoyed at home.
His wife and sons received this quilt made in his honor. |
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Navy
Petty Officer 3rd Class David A. Cedergren, followed two
generations in his family in service in the Navy. He died in
Iraq on Sept. 11, 2004 of electrocution from faulty wiring
on his base. He was a hospital corpsman. He grew up in S.
St. Paul. This quilt was given to his father and step-mother
in Lakeland, MN. |
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P. O. 3rd Class David A. Cedergren was 25. This quilt was
given to his mother in St. Cloud. He is also survived by two
sisters and two brothers and many nieces and nephews. David
had many plans for his future and wanted to work in a
profession where he continued to serve others. |
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Spec.
Brent W. Koch, 22, was with the Minnesota National Guard in Iraq when
he was killed on June 16, 2006. He lived in Morton, MN. The Redwood
Area Quilters made this quilt for his father. Brent was deployed with
the Hutchinson Company E, 2nd Battalion, a combat engineer unit,
responsible for convoy and base security. |
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S Sgt.
Brian Studer, 28, served in an ordinance disposal unit and was a few
months away from discharge when a bomb he was working to defuse in
Afghanistan exploded and killed him on August 22, 2008. He wanted to
use his skills to remove land mines in the world after service. His
third cousin made this quilt for his mother in Ramsey. |
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Jamie
Michalsky was a civilian Russian interpreter working for the Army
Reserves in Uzbekistan, and received a minor injury to her hand there.
Sent to Afghanistan for treatment, she was near a UN truck targeted by
a bomber in Kabul on October 23, 2004, killing her. Her grandparents
who raised her in Cokato, MN received this quilt. |
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Navy
Special Chief Thomas
Valentine, 37, died in a parachute training exercise on Feb.13, 2008.
He was a patriotic and decorated Seal who served in both Afghanistan
and Iraq. He was also a serious climber who scaled Mt. McKinley. He is
survived by a brother and sister and his parents who received this
quilt. |
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SOCS
Thomas Valentine is also survived by his wife and two young children
in Virginia Beach, VA. We hope they are comforted by this quilt in his
memory. |
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S. Sgt.
Jacob Thompson loved the Army and fishing. He even did some fishing at
Ft. Lewis, WA before his last deployment. He was killed by a bomb
while searching buildings in Baqouba, Iraq on Aug. 6, 2007. He was 26
years old and grew up in N. Mankato, MN. His parents and 2 older
brothers were given this quilt. |
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Major
Curtis D. Feistner graduated from West Point and was a member of the
Nightstalkers unit. He was killed in a helicopter training accident on
Feb. 21, 2002 in the Philippines at the age of 34. He is survived by
his mother and brother. His mother received this quilt. He was based
at Ft. Campbell, KY. |
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Sgt. David
Arthur Johnson was working as a Chaplain's assistant in the Army. He
grew up near Milwaukee, WI and was 22 when he tragically took his own
life. This quilt will comfort his mother. |
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