Doing her part to honor the troops.

• Author: Mayer, Elizabeth
• Position: Q&A - Jessica Porter - Brief Article

Nineteen-yea1 old. Jessica Porter of Hudson, Florida, on-founded a project called Operation Homefront Quilts to make quilts for all the families of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq. With the death toll still rising--and each quilt taking up to 12 hours to complete-she and a group of volunteers have their ] work cut out for them. UPFRONT spoke to Porter about the effort.

So you quilt?

Yeah, I think other teenagers don't realize how much full it is. They all think it's like an old-lady thing, but really it's very creative. And they make great gifts.

What's the goat of Operation Homefront Quilts?

A quilt is a tangible reminder that someone cares, and it's our way of showing appreciation. And that we remember their loved one.

Do you consider yourself an activist?

This is just...