U.S. Navy Veteran Charlotte Freifeld Awarded a Quilt of Honor

By Cailin Acosta

LA MESA, California – On Wednesday, November 12, I had the honor of attending the “Quilts of Valor” ceremony for my best friend, Chief Hospital Corpsman Charlotte Freifeld, United States Naval Reserve (Retired). The event took place in the Social Hall of Foothills Methodist Church in La Mesa. Also joining us was Chief Hospital Corpsman Stephanie Seagal, United States Navy (Retired), who nominated Freifeld to receive her quilt. Our shared bond through membership at Tifereth Israel Synagogue made the day even more special.

Before the ceremony, attendees were treated to a pasta and salad buffet lunch hosted by the La Mesa Women’s Club and the La Mesa Chamber of Commerce. Then followed a meaningful tribute to my best friend and 13 other veterans who were being honored.

Representatives from the Quilts of Valor Foundation of San Diego County, Peggy Johnson and Kay Lettington, led the program.

Founded in 2003 by Blue Star mom Catherine Roberts, the Quilts of Valor Foundation began after Roberts’ son was deployed to Iraq. Inspired to bring comfort to veterans, she envisioned quilts as tangible expressions of gratitude. Since then, the organization has grown into a nationwide grassroots effort connecting the home front with combat warriors, veterans of all eras, and others touched by war.

Today, more than 12,000 volunteers lovingly stitch Quilts of Valor across the country. Each quilt represents countless hours of care, along with prayers and healing thoughts. Those nominated to receive one are awarded a heartfelt token of appreciation that says, “Thank you for your service, sacrifice, and valor.”

A Quilt of Valor is a generous “nap-size” quilt, pieced and quilted with patriotic fabrics carefully chosen to reflect honor and gratitude. Volunteers say that as they sew, their love and appreciation flow from their hearts into their work. After the quilt is bound, washed, and labeled, it is ready to be awarded—connecting each recipient to the broader quilting family.

The meaning of a Quilt of Valor is profound. It honors the recipient’s service and acknowledges that freedom is not free. These quilts are intended to provide comfort and serve as a permanent reminder that veterans remain in our thoughts and hearts.

To date, nearly 428,000 Quilts of Valor have been awarded nationwide—each richly deserved and deeply appreciated.

During the ceremony, Lettington called Freifeld to the front, expressing the honor of acknowledging her 20 years of service from 1972 to 1993: four years in the regular Navy followed by 16 years in the Naval Reserve.

After graduating from the final boot camp class at Bainbridge, Maryland, in 1972, Freifeld served two years in the emergency room at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Rhode Island. In 1974, she trained as a laboratory technician and went on to serve in that capacity at U.S. Naval Hospital Great Lakes, Illinois, and later at U.S. Naval Hospital Bethesda, Maryland. Her unit was recalled to active duty during Operation Desert Storm/Desert Shield, after which she transferred to U.S. Naval Hospital San Diego to continue serving as a lab technician.

Following her retirement from the Naval Reserve, Freifeld continued her service to military families as a civilian laboratory technician at U.S. Naval Hospital San Diego.

As Freifeld was wrapped in her quilt, Johnson shared this message from the volunteers of Quilts of Valor: their desire to offer more than words alone by presenting a tangible symbol of gratitude—one crafted through many hours of devotion. “Thank you for your service,” she read. “Please accept the comfort of this Quilt of Valor. May it serve as a reminder of our country’s gratitude. You richly deserve the recognition and appreciation this quilt represents.”

Many recipients offered tearful words of thanks, with several paying tribute to fellow service members who lost their battles with mental illness after enduring difficult deployments.

Click here for more information on Quilts of Valor.

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Cailin Acosta is the assistant editor of the San Diego Jewish World.