Natalie's Everyday Heroes: Mother-daughter duo accomplishes mission to sew 75 quilts for veterans

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- A mother-daughter duo took on a huge task this past year. They committed to sewing 75 quilts for military veterans.

It's a mission that took them all over the state.

They accomplished what they set out to do, and now, those quilts will travel all over the world.

"Does that make sense?" Cheryl Langel asked, laying out a piece of fabric.

Putting together a quilt is a little like piecing together a puzzle.

"Oh, that won't work," she said.

Each piece has to be in the right place for the pattern to come together.

"Yep, I see it now," she said, swapping out a piece.

Cheryl and Amanda Langel can spend hours working on just one.

"We misbehave a lot," Cheryl Langel said. "It's a lot of fun and it's very creative."

It's a skill mother has passed on to daughter, although Amanda wasn't initially so sure about it.

"I have to say, now when people ask me about it, I do admit that I actually am a quilter," Amanda Langel said.

She's proud of those skills now, after she and her mom finished a tough challenge.

They were asked by a family member to sew quilts for veterans.

"I said sure, how many do you need? He goes, there's 75 of them. I was like, 75 in less than a year? Sure. We can do it," Cheryl Langel said with a laugh.

One thing they needed was more patriotic fabric.

"She goes, and so we have two weeks, 67 stores. Can we do it? Challenge accepted! Let's go," Amanda Langel said of their decision to join the Wisconsin Shop Hop, an event that took them to nearly 70 quilting stores.

They traveled the state from here to Hayward, gathering supplies.

"I always say pretty side down," Amanda said, placing the batting inside the quilt.

And then they got to work.

"It just feels good. I've always wanted to help people, and this is a fun way to do it," Cheryl said.

Cheryl Langel delivered 57 of those quilts to Veterans Outreach of Wisconsin in Racine just before Thanksgiving.

"It was huge. It was amazing for us," said Executive Director Michael Rembalski.

The organization runs a village of tiny homes, a marketplace, and serves hundreds of people.

Rembalski said the handmade quilts meant a lot.

"It helps them feel supported and valued, and even just remembered during the holiday season," he said of the veterans they serve.

For the Langels, that was the final piece of this puzzle. Spending time together, creating something special for those who've done so much.

"The fact that we're able to do this and give back to our community, because they need, it was awesome," Amanda Langel said.

Cheryl's husband, Frank, reached out to CBS 58 to tell us about these quilts. He said they hope to send the remaining quilts to service members around the world, and they're going to keep sewing.

As for Veterans Outreach of Wisconsin, if you'd like to help or learn more, click here. 

If you'd like to nominate an Everyday Hero, send Natalie a message at [email protected].