- February 8, 2025
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It was a large quilt, covered in red, white and blue, and had been specially made for a Port Orange veteran who had served in World War II.
The quilt was awarded by the Port Orange Quilts of Valor organization to 94-year-old Samuel Mula, a Purple Heart recipient, who had served in the 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines from 1943 to 1946.
For the local women who came together to make the quilt, it was a way to say thank you to the man who had served his country. This is the reason Terry Burtchell, Volusia County QOV leader, started a group in Port Orange — to give back to the men and women who served.
"They're real heroes," Burtchell said. "It's amazing, their life, what they went through."
Burtchell found out about Mula when his daughter came into her own daughter's seamstress shop to have a dress altered for a wedding. That's when the two women began talking about the Marine veteran who lived in Port Orange with his wife.
Two weeks later, Burtchell and her husband were in Mula's living room with a quilt.
According to Burtchell, Mula, who worked as an engineer in the Marines, had been hit by shrapnel injuring his wrist and chest. He had fought in three battles in the Pacific near New Zealand: Tarawa, Faiean and Tinian. Mula also had two brothers who served in World War II.
"He told me that when he was done with the Marines, they let him go and gave him $18 and told him to get a bus back to Pennsylvania where he was from," Burtchell said. She added: "He just had story after story he kept telling me. He's a true American hero."
The future of QOV
With another quilt awarded, Burtchell is trying to make more for additional veterans. Now that the group has a location at the Port Orange Regional Library, she is trying to supply the many requests coming in.
According to Burtchell, whose son served int he Army, there are around 36 veterans on the waiting list for a quilt in the Port Orange area alone. She is looking for donations or fabric.
Burtchell first became involved in QOV three years ago when she retired from her seamstress business, which she had for 35 years before she passed it down to her daughter.
The group's first meeting will be at the Port Orange Regional Library. The first date is set for 9:30 a.m. to noon Tuesday, Sept. 5. The group will meet the first Tuesday of each month at the same time.
For more information or to join, visit qovf.org, call 290-0172 or email [email protected].
