Ladies Of Chrome Veteran Appretation! The Wrapping Of Charley W. Hylton Article by Cammie Bunch Photography by Deb Davis
age of 64. He and Edith, his wife of eighteen years, currently reside in West Columbia, SC. I had the pleasure of meeting Charley, a courageous Army veteran, Saturday evening at the VFW where he was awarded a Quilt of Valor. This quilt was handmade at the Quilt of Valor-Region 8. It is located in the old Library on Highway 601 in Saint Matthews, SC. A Quilt of Valor is a generous lap-sized quilt (minimum of 55” X 65”) made by a quilt-topper (the piecer) of quality fabrics and beautifully quilted by a longarmer. After it has been bound, washed, labeled and wrapped in a presentation case, it is ready to be awarded. Each quilt is even placed in a carrying case that is made from the remnants from American Flags that did not turn out correctly. This further symbolizes the patriotism of the American soldier. This ensures not a single American flag is ever wasted, burned, or trashed.
On Saturday night, March 12, 2022, at 6:00 pm, the Veterans of Foreign Wars POST 8738 hosted an awards banquet. Across America, the initials VFW are a familiar sight and symbolize a commitment to the nation both at home and abroad. Their mission: “To foster camaraderie among United States Veterans of overseas conflicts. To serve our veterans, the military, and our communities. To advocate on behalf of all veterans.” At their annual banquet the VFW POST 8738 honored first responders, teachers, scholarship recipients, auxiliary members, comrades, volunteers, and one very special veteran. His Name is Charley W. Hylton. I had the honor of meeting with this extraordinary and brave man. Charley W. Hylton was born January 9, 1922, in Swordscreek, Virginia. He had 15 siblings. Charley enlisted in the Army on January 18, 1940, just nine days after he turned 18. His father was a coal miner, but Charley decided that coal mining was not for him so he joined the Army seeking better opportunities. His first assignment was with the 12th Infantry Division in Washington, DC assigned to Special Services at Arlington National Cemetery. Later he was assigned to Camp Jackson, now known as Fort Jackson, SC with the 8th Infantry Division. It was during this assignment he met and later married his first wife, Willye Grey Meetze. Charley and Willye had two children. He was reassigned from the 8th Infantry Division to the 77th Infantry Division where he ended up serving as a paratrooper. After training and qualifying to be a paratrooper at Fort Benning, GA, he was then sent to Brisbane, Australia where he served as a replacement in the 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment. Charley sailed aboard The Monticello, a converted Italian liner, for 31 days to get to Brisbane, Austra- Quilts are awarded at many different levels: they may go to military hospitals where Chaplains award them to service memlia. The ship had an excess of 4,500 personnel on board! While with the 503rd, he was assigned to “E” Company bers; there may be presentations of QOV’s to entire service units as they went first to Noemfoor and later Mindor. On February 16, returning from combat deployments; they may be awarded at 1945 Charley was one of 2,050 paratroopers who jumped onto Veterans Administration’s or presented individually. However, no Corregidor Island, Philippines as this was the first day of the Bat- matter how a Quilt of Valor is given, the impact it delivers is untle of Corregidor. The Battle of Corregidor was a conflict that last- equivocal. The pictures do not do this ceremony and beauty of ed for 14 days which saw 210 American deaths, 790 wounded and the quilt justice. And that is exactly what happened on Saturday, March 5 missing in action. The conflict finally ended on March 2, 1945 after Charley’s unit along with the 34th Infantry Division recap- 12. Charley was presented with a beautiful, one of a kind case tured the island from the Japanese. Following the Battle of Cor- containing an even more special and unique quilt. Four generations of Hylton’s and a packed banquet hall regidor, Charley went back to Mindora and then Negros, where watched as Charley was wrapped in the most beautiful quilt I he served as a Scout for his Platoon. In August of 1945 Charley was released at the rank of Tech Sgt, and began his journey home had ever seen before, tears and an overwhelming sense of pride based on the point system. He was aboard a transport vessel on filled the room for all and then again when they wrapped his the way home (three days out of San Francisco), when the bomb wife with him. It was truly a humbling experience to be in the ending the war was dropped on Hiroshima. Alas, the war was company of such a heroic man. He fought for our country and we fought to hold back the tears as we watched the presentation to finally over. And Charley’s life journey continued. After returning home, Charley worked maintenance in thank him while deep down knowing it would never be enough. a cotton mill for a while. He then started his own business in Charley, we thank you for your service! plumbing and electrical work from where he retired at the young 26 WWW.CHROMESC.COM
