LADIES NIGHT OUT EVENT TO RECOGNIZE QUILT OF VALOR RECIPIENTS You and your friends are invited to a very special event on Thursday, October 17, 6-8pm when Tri-County Women’s Connection will recognize local Quilt of Valor recipients, Ingrid Engels, Air Force and Dr. Tammy Holloway, US Navy Seabee. From 5:00 to 5:45, you will have an opportunity to meet our recipients and see their quilts. Our Guest Speaker is Tammy Ortung, a retired Air Force veteran from South Carolina. TCWC will host this event in the banquet room of the Union County Community Center overlooking the beautiful mountains and Butternut Creek Golf Course, 129 Union County Recreation Road, Blairsville. The check-in desk will open at 5:00pm. Between 5pm and 5:45pm, there will be a table with information about the original Blairsville QOV group started by Linda Gorman. As always, we start the evening off with a delicious dinner: roast beef, mashed potatoes, carrots, green beans, bread, dessert, coffee, tea and water. Next comes door prizes! The Quilt of Valor Foundation, was started in 2003 by Catherine Roberts mission statement: “To cover Service Members and Veterans touched by war with comforting and healing Quilts of Valor.” In August 2024, 21,380 QOV’s were awarded, with the lifetime QOV’s totaling 394,774. Since 2016, Sue Young of Murphy, NC oversees the Quilt of Valor group serving Cherokee & Clay Counties in NC and Fannin, Towns and Union Counties in Georgia. Tammy Ortung, will share her story, “Dorothy, You’re Not In Kansas Anymore”. Tammy grew up in Ohio and enlisted in the Air Force in 1986. In her military career, she served as an F-15 Crew Chief; retrained in Computer Maintenance, taught Professional Military Education and ROTC at the University of Washington before retiring at McChord AFB in Tacoma, Washington in 2011. She deployed to Baghdad in 2009, augmenting the Army Multi-National Forces Manpower Office. Tammy earned an MFA in Creative Writing in 2020 and has a passion for helping other writers hone their craft. She serves as a nonfiction co-editor for the As You Were—Military Reviewonline journal, providing free editing and coaching services to Vietnam and other Veterans around the world. She also volunteers with several organizations in her local community. Tammy is married to Tim, also a retired Air Force veteran, and they live in South Carolina near family and their five grandchildren. Please plan to enjoy this special evening with us and invite a friend! The cost is $25 which includes the program, dinner, dessert, coffee/tea/water. Reservations and payment are due by October 11. For reservations, e-mail Jocelyn at jowabow@aol.com OR via text or call Jane at 706-633-7868. Pre-payment by check (payable to TCWC) and mail to Judy Teague 3245 Mulkey Gap Road, Blairsville GA 30512. If you are paying for other guests, please include their names. We would love to see many women veterans, active or retired, at our event. We invite those ladies who love to quilt to come and learn more about the Quilt of Valor Foundation and how you can be involved. Since 1981, the Blairsville Tri-County Women’s Connection in affiliation with Stonecroft has planned and hosted events for women that provide a positive, upbeat time of fun, food and friendship. We look forward to connecting with you.