AFMC civilian represents Air Force as award nominee Published Sept. 2, 2009 Air Force Materiel Command Public Affairs Report WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio. -- An Air Force Materiel Command civilian is the Air Force nominee for the 2008 Spirit of Hope Award. The Spirit of Hope award is inspired by the USO and named after entertainer Bob Hope. It honors armed forces members and civilians alike who epitomize the values of duty, honor, commitment, integrity and selfless dedication by enhancing the quality of life for service members. The Air Force decided Ms. Virginia Dosedel fit this bill as the founder of Sew Much Comfort, a non-profit charity that provides specialized adaptive clothing to cover prosthetics and external frame devices. In less than five years, Ms. Dosedel transformed the charity from a small group of friends to a corps of more than 1,000 volunteers. Together, that group has provided nearly 100,000 free items of adaptive clothing to severely injured military members with amputations, shrapnel injuries, broken limbs, and severe burns. The clothing improves lives by enhancing appearance, minimizing the visual impact of injuries, providing wound protection and increasing comfort and dignity as service members recuperate from injuries sustained in battle. Sew Much Comfort was inspired by Dosedel's son, a cancer survivor who suggested she continue making the adaptive clothing she had made for him during his numerous surgeries. Dosedel was nominated for the Spirit of Hope award by the 754th Electronic Systems Group, where she worked before coming to Air Force Materiel Command Financial Management. Dosedel has been honored for her work before. She was lauded for her efforts by former president George Bush during a visit to the White House in which President Bush recognized Military Support Organizations. She was chosen as ABC Nightly News Person of the Week and was awarded the Air Force Material Command Spouse of the Year Award. Ms. Dosedel epitomizes the true spirit of duty, loyalty, integrity, commitment, and selfless dedication to the quality of life of service members and their families of United States Armed Forces.