The purpose of the hand-stitched “kissing pillows” is to provide soldiers with a keepsake to kiss and pass onto loved ones left behind as the soldiers depart for military service outside the country. Led by committee chairs Carolyn Stolhand, Nancy Shelton, Ann Elders and Ann Hilario, the pillows were made by local stitchers at their monthly meetings, held the third Saturday of each month at the North Hill Community Center in Des Moines.
“Our chapter members have taken on this project with love and interest,” fellow stitcher and EGA member Ann Hilario said. “They have been wonderful in donating the fabric, threads, stitching and time to complete these pillows to provide the soldiers’ families with a unique keepsake. We are so thankful for the dedication and sacrifices these soldiers and families make for all of us that we wanted to give something back to them.”
Hilario, a local REALTOR® and Associate Broker for Prudential Northwest Realty in Kent, is particularly proud of the project. Hilario’s husband, Jim, is a civilian with the U.S. Army Corp. of Engineers of Fort Lewis. He is currently serving his second tour in Afghanistan. Her son, Justin, a Marine Security Guard for the U.S. Embassy, spent six months in Baghdad, Iraq but has returned home safely.
For more information about the project, or to join the local chapter please contact Ann Hilario at 253-372-1345 or visit the EGA chapter’s website at www.ega-gpr.org/
