Quilters present Quilts of Valor to veterans

The Quilts of Valor Foundation is a national program established to honor veterans of all services. Its goal is to cover all physically or psychologically wounded service members with a freedom quilt, honoring them for their sacrifices.

The movement started in 2003 and has now spread across the United States

The Canyon Lake Quilters create Quilts of Valor and present them to Canyon Lake veterans.

On Wednesday, March 22, the group presented two newly created quilts to Canyon Lake veterans Bill Allen and Al Barr.

Bill grew up in a small Oklahoma town. He tried to enlist in the U.S. Navy but was rejected for being too young. The Navy accepted his application in 1942, during World War ll. He was 20 years old.

Bill served 13 years as an enlisted serviceman and 17 years as an officer. He served on cruisers, carriers, destroyers and several fleets and force staffs.

During World War ll, Bill served in the South Pacific, including two years on Guadalcanal from December 1942 to December 1944, and on an aircraft carrier in Korean waters in support of the U.S. activity in Korea. After 30 years of service, Bill retired in 1972 as a commander.

Al Barr joined the U.S. Navy in 1946 at the age of 17. He was sent to University Southern California to participate in its Navy ROTC program and then on to Pensacola for flight school training.

Al has flown off five carriers and had 185 carrier landings. In the Korean War, Al flew the Corsair for 53 combat missions and the Banshee for photo missions.

After the war, Al taught Naval Science at University California Los Angeles. He retired in 1967.