Retired Lieutenant Commander John Foster — better known in these parts as Jack Foster — was honored Labor Day weekend with a surprise Quilts of Valor presentation that took place at American Legion Post 191 in Webster City. His son Kevin Foster, of Clinton, Utah, made the presentation. Holding the quilt are his daughter-in-law Cindy Foster, right, and his daughter Kelly Foster, of Webster City.

Retired Lieutenant Commander John Foster — better known in these parts as Jack Foster — was honored Labor Day weekend with a surprise Quilts of Valor presentation that took place at American Legion Post 191 in Webster City.

Foster, who will be 93 on September 17, retired from the United States Navy.

Extended members of his family gathered in Webster City for the presentation.

Foster’s son, Kevin Foster, of Clinton, Utah, stood at a podium and read a message to his father from Rod Beem, United States Army – Specialist 4th Class First Calvary, Phuoc Vinh, Vietnam 1970.

“John, it is an honor to award you a Quilt of Valor for your military service. You had an illustrious career serving our country as a member of the United States Navy.

“Vietnam era veterans are brothers who fought without America’s support and returned without America’s welcome. Brothers who will always be the best American had.

“In 1948, at the age of 16, you enlisted in the Iowa National Guard and were assigned to Company E of the 133rd Infantry. After three months, you enlisted in the United States Navy and went to boot camp at the U.S. Navy Recruit Training Center in San Diego, California. Your Naval rating was Aviation Machinist Mate.”

According to Beem, Foster served in Guam, Naval Air Stations Kwajalein, on the Marshall Islands, Moffitt Field, and San Diego (North Island).

He was a naval recruiter in Minneapolis, and attended officer candidate school in Newport, Rhode Island, commissioned as an Ensign. Foster was also posted to Norfolk, Virginia; Key West, Florida; Little Creek, Virginia; Washington, D.C., for a Vietnamese language course; and then on to Vietnam from October 4, 1965 to October 4, 1966; and finally to Coronado, California.

He was aboard the following Naval ships:

— USS Bexar (APA-237) an attack transport;

— USS Mount McKinley (AGC-7) an amphibious command ship;

— USS Bordelon (DDR-881) a radar picket destroyer in the Mediterranean;

— USS Sierra (AD-18) a destroyer tender;

— USS Canberra (CAG-2) guided missile cruiser;

— USS Middlesex County (LST-983) a tank landing ship;

— RVNS Tuy Dong (HQ-04) a south Vietnamese patrol ship. Foster was the only American aboard, Beem noted.

“You retired and were released from active duty on July 1, 1968, with an ending rank of Lieutenant Commander, 0-4. You were a Mustang, a commissioned officer who began their career as an enlisted service member.

“Your civilian career included part ownership of an auto parts store, an educator in Arizona, and a gunsmith.

Locally, as a public servant, Foster served on the Webster City Community School District Board of Directors and the City Council of Webster City. He received the Governor’s Volunteer Award in 1990 for outstanding service to the State of Iowa.

In his letter, Beem said, “A veteran, whether on active duty, discharged, retired or in the reserves, is someone who at one point in their life wrote a blank check made payable to the United States of America to uphold and defend our Constitution, for any amount up to and including their life.

“All veterans gave some, some gave all and you lived up to the military codes of loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage.

“As Ronald Reagan once said, ‘Some people live an entire lifetime and.wonder if they have ever made a difference in the world, a veteran doesn’t have that problem.’

“This quilt tells you and your family the importance of your service. You gave your time away from home and family to serve part of your life as a member of the United States Armed Forces. I hope your quilt gives comfort and keeps you warm when it is wrapped around you.”

Then Kevin Foster, himself having served in the Army and Air Force, saluted his father.

The Quilts of Valor Foundation began in 2003 with a dream, literally a dream, according to its website.

“Founder Catherine Roberts’ son Nat was deployed in Iraq. According to Catherine:

“The dream was as vivid as real life. I saw a young man sitting on the side of his bed in the middle of the night, hunched over. The permeating feeling was one of utter despair. I could see his war demons clustered around, dragging him down into an emotional gutter. Then, as if viewing a movie, I saw him in the next scene wrapped in a quilt. His whole demeanor changed from one of despair to one of hope and well-being. The quilt had made this dramatic change. The message of my dream was: Quilts = Healing.

“The model appeared simple: have a volunteer team who would donate their time and materials to make a quilt. One person would piece the top and the other would quilt it. I saw the name for this special quilt: it was Quilt of Valor, a QOV.”