Photo by Dana O'Connor
Key Points
- Loretta Forlaw received two awards at VFW Post 10147, including a Quilt of Valor honoring her Vietnam War service as a U.S. Army Nurse Corps member.
- Forlaw was inducted into the DAR Women in American History database alongside notable women like Amelia Earhart and Maya Angelou.
- She is an associate professor at UCF, first female commander of VFW Post 10147, and president of the Northwest Orange Republican Women, Federated club.
Apopka Veterans of Foreign Wars Commander Loretta Forlaw received two prestigious awards Saturday at VFW Post 10147 during a fundraising concert.
Bugler Paul Chong-You played the Call to Assembly before Melissa Mathews, a representative from Quilts of Valor, presented Forlawwith a red, white and blue quilt. Volunteers had sewn the quilt to honor Forlaw’s service in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps at Bai Combat Base in Vietnam.
“I was so honored to receive the Quilt of Valor,” Forlaw said in a statement to The Apopka Chief. “I agreed to the presentation during a VFW fundraising concert because I have recently become aware that women combat veterans are often asked why they are wearing their husband’s shirts. Many people do not realize that women and military nurses served in the Vietnam War and wars throughout history. There are approximately 170,000 women veterans in Florida and 1.3 million nationally.”
To Forlaw’s surprise, Chong-You played the Call to Assembly a second time to welcome Dr. Sarah Hoefler, chairman of the American History Committee of the Daughters of the American Revolution’s (DAR) William P. Duval chapter. Hoefler’s chapter had nominated Forlaw to the DAR’s Florida state committee. Her application was then sent to the DAR’s Women in American History Committee, which selected her application to be placed in the DAR database.
“She joins such notable women as Amelia Earhart, Maya Angelou, and Eleanor Roosevelt,” a Feb. 23 press release said. “Three hundred years from now, a person researching the role of women in the [Vietnam] War will find her name and read about her life.”
The Florida committee had selected Forlaw for her accomplishments in education, politics and community service. Forlaw serves as an associate professor at the University of Central Florida, the first female commander of VFW Post 10147, and president of the Northwest Orange Republican Women, Federated (NORWF) club. She spent 25 years in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, receiving the Legion of Merit Award upon her retirement.
“It is such a privilege to join the roll call of women who have received the DAR Women in American History Award,” Forlaw said. “I am proud to receive the responsibility and honor associated with this award.”