VALENTINE, Neb. - At the Cherry County Fair in Valentine, a group of 4-Hers honored local veterans not with medals, but with something softer—quilts stitched from the heart and sewn with stories.

The Quilts of Valor ceremony on Tuesday featured about two dozen veterans, each presented a handmade quilt crafted by area youth. Among those presenting was Syerra Dawson, who spent hours piecing together a quilt she would give to someone special.

“It took a long time to make, but it’s really worth it to give it to him,” said Syerra.

The recipient: Larry O’Kief, who joined the reserve National Guard in 1966 and was promoted to acting sergeant of his platoon. During basic training, he got life-changing news.

“At 2:00 in the morning I find out I have my first son, so I’m going down the street saying, ‘I have a baby. I have a boy.’ Everybody told me, ‘Shut up. I’m trying to sleep,’” O’Kief said.

Syerra and her two sisters interviewed veterans, collected their stories, sewed the quilts, and then presented them in front of a packed crowd.

“Thanks a million. Appreciate it,” said John Markus, a Vietnam-era Air Force veteran, to Shyanne Dawson, who made his quilt.

Markus earned the nickname “Cowboy” while stationed in the Azores Islands.

“They were Portuguese people, and a lot of little kids. They didn’t know what rodeoing was, so I started a rodeo club,” Markus said.

After returning home, Markus became a pilot—and still a cowboy.

“I got into the cattle business. I used the plane to fly and check cattle and windmills and fences and gates,” he said.

The third Dawson sister, Sydnee, presented a quilt to Buster Hand. Hand served in Germany during the Cuban Missile Crisis and Vietnam, earning recognition as a sharpshooter.

“Knowing that you’re handing a quilt off to a veteran who sacrificed his life for you is very rewarding,” said Sydnee.

A gesture the Dawson sisters hope stitches remembrance into the hearts of everyone watching.

“You do take it and present it to a lot of people to share that story too,” said Syerra.

Stories of courage, sacrifice and service—carefully quilted into fabric, and after some time, handed over with open hearts.