Milton pastor Litzenberger receives Quilt of Valor
In front of his congregation, Pastor Brian Litzenberger of Open Arms Seventh-day Adventist Church in Milton was honored with a Quilt of Valor for his past military service.
Litzenberger, known as Pastor Brian to his congregation, began his service in the early 1990s when he joined the National Guard in his native California. He later joined the Coast Guard and, all told, served for 11 years.
Quilts of Valor Foundation is a national program started in 2003 by Catherine Roberts, whose son was deployed to Iraq. To comfort him, she had the idea of making a quilt. Since then, 400,000 quilts have been made in recognition of service members. The quilt is meant to be used, not displayed, and is individually decorated for the service member.
Litzenberger’s wife Leticia presented him with the quilt and a certificate of appreciation. Clearly choked up by the honor, he said, “I served for 11 years, and most of the people I served with didn’t give it a thought. We just did it because we loved our country and we loved our freedom.”
In accepting the honor, Litzenberger said he thought about people he served with who are no longer here.
“We did it because we believed in what we served for,” he said.
Ryan Mavity covers Milton and the court system. He is married to Rachel Swick Mavity and has two kids, Alex and Jane. Ryan started with the Cape Gazette all the way back in February 2007, previously covering the City of Rehoboth Beach. A native of Easton, Md. and graduate of Towson University, Ryan enjoys watching the Baltimore Ravens, Washington Capitals and Baltimore Orioles in his spare time.
