Vietnam veteran presented with Quilt of Valor at Cheyenne County Fair

CHEYENNE COUNTY, Neb. — An Army veteran is being honored for his service at the Cheyenne County Fair. 

U.S. Army and National Guard veteran James McCaig was presented with a Quilt of Valor Thursday night. A Vietnam veteran, McCaig earned the Purple Heart and Bronze Star with Valor among other commendations.

McCaig was wounded by sniper during a search and destroy mission while serving in Vietnam. After serving in the southeast Asian country from 1966-67 McCaig discharged from the Army in 1968. 

He then rejoined in 1973, serving as a hawk missile crew member until 1984. McCaig then served a stint in the National Guard as an artilleryman from 1984 until his retirement in 1992.

Members of Cheyenne County 4-H helped assemble the quilt presented to McCaig. 

The Quilts of Valor Foundation was created in 2003 by Catherine Roberts. Roberts son, Nat, was deployed to Iraq at the time. One night Catherine had a dream where she saw a service member, sitting at the side of their bed, struggling with the demons of war. She then described seeing the man wrapped in a quilt with his whole demeanor changed from one of despair to one of hope. 

Roberts took that dream and turned it into a nationwide foundation that has 10,000 volunteers nationwide that has awarded a 250,000 Quilts of Valor.