‘Our mission is the impossible dream — that every veteran is served’: The Virgene Project quietly provides for those who served our country

QUINCY — To tell the story of The Virgene Project is to tell the story of Jim and Sue Hobbins, the people who brought it to life. 

The Virgene Project, 812 Hampshire, provides free clothing for veterans. It may not exist today were it not for a nurse joining the military and serving in New Guinea during World War II. 

The Virgene Project is named after Virgene Gilkerson, born in Camp Point and a long-time resident of Quincy. She served as a nurse in the Pacific during World War II. She often shared with Jim and Sue, as well as Dave and Charlotte Tooke, her many wartime memories. 

Gilkerson died on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, 2014, at age 92. Since she was a devoted supporter and representative of the veterans community, it seemed appropriate that the Virgene Project keep her memory alive and pay tribute to her service to the country, her church community and Quincy.

“She was a veteran’s veteran,” Sue said. “She had been on the Honor Flight. She was active in anything to do with veterans. If there was a parade, she was on the veteran’s float. She was very active in the Red Cross and anything else she could do.

“Virgene told Jim, ‘It was soldiers like you who I would take care of.’” 

A Place for Veterans

Jim and Sue started the project with their friends, the Tookes. Dave is a 20-year veteran of the Air Force, and Jim was a part of the U.S. Army from 1944-46, service in the Philippines and then as part of the Allied occupation of Japan at the end of World War II. Dave and Jim spoke the same language. 

“At first, we called it, ‘Vets for Vets,’ as it is veterans helping veterans, as Jim and Dave were both veterans,” Sue said.

Jim Hobbins said, “I looked around, and there wasn’t anything like I envisioned for veterans in Quincy. There were organizations that gave clothing away, but it wasn’t focused on veterans. I wanted a place that was isolated just for veterans.”

Dave said he got involved with the Virgene Project when Jim and Sue started it with a one-day event at the Senior Center. 

“The first two years, we didn’t have a store,” Dave said. “We used one of the rooms at the Quincy Senior Center. We had so much clothing in our house that I told Sue, ‘Either the clothes or me are going to need to go at some point.’ We knew that wasn’t working.”

A conversation then was held in 2017 with Glenn Swick, a local real estate broker, when the Hobbinses and the Tookes were part of the recently organized Veterans Referral Initiative. The group’s purpose was to bring together the local and state organizations that provide service and assistance to local veteran needs.”

“After Jim explained their concept, I thought it was a great idea and would be a good fit downtown,” Swick said. “So for a few weeks, I made some calls to local property owners, but none were interested in giving up any space free or at a discount. I had storage space in the building where my office is located and offered it to Jim and Sue at no cost as long as they wanted to use it for their veterans store.

“A nice surprise was when Quincy’s Home Depot stepped in to renovate the space they were to use for their store at no cost. It was a great example of local businesses and volunteers working together to provide for our local area veterans in need. I believe all or most of the Home Depot employees who volunteered to work on it were also veterans.”

Jim called Gilkerson’s children to ask if he could use her name on a store for veterans.

“They said, ‘Mom would have appreciated that,'” Jim said.

The Impossible Dream

Not all veterans need clothing, but the Virgene Project isn’t based on need.

“This is based on whether you are a veteran or married to a Veteran,” Sue said. “It is about giving back to veterans however we can. Sometimes, Jim will take someone over to the Salvation Army and tell them that the veteran is out of food today. Can they help them out? They will leave with a box of food. We don’t want to see anyone homeless, but certainly not veterans. These people have put their lives on the line, even if they weren’t in combat.

“Our mission is the impossible dream — that every veteran is served, not only with clothes and shoes but that their basic needs are met. And yet, why do they not have a place to live? Why don’t they have a job? Why don’t they have clothes? We started out thinking about very basic needs and homelessness. There are a lot of people who aren’t homeless who still need a lot of help.” 

The Virgene Project has become more than clothes to people. Sometimes it’s just a cup of coffee and talking to someone.

“I’m not a counselor,” Sue said. “Jim keeps calling me the mother, everyone’s mother.  Whatever it is that people tell me, I want them to know that I remember. If people have been here more than once or twice, I usually can call them by their first name. During the cold weather, I will have coffee and I like to have cookies for them too.”

Jim said when Sue became the store manager, it touched a chord. 

“She treats everyone who walks through the door as her son or daughter,” he said. “Someone will sit in a chair here and tell her the stories of their life. This is real stuff. We are not playing games here. I will sit here for the whole day, and if I have one veteran come through the door, my mission is accomplished. Sue feels the same way about that. She is a powerful lady, very honest and real. What you see is what you get. The luckiest day of my life was when I found her at a time in my life when I didn’t know what I was going to do with my life.”

The story of the Virgene Project was brought to the forefront by Amanda Erwin, director of grant coordination at YWCA Quincy and Tri-State Veterans Support.

“I don’t think most people in Quincy realize we have these treasures in our community: Jim and Sue Hobbins and the Virgene Project,” Erwin said. “Jim and Sue are secretly, quietly doing this incredible work for our community. If anyone deserves their story to be thoroughly, professionally and beautifully documented, it’s them.

“From a service provider perspective, it’s not just YWCA Quincy that is grateful for the Virgene Project. All of Quincy’s social service agencies know every Veteran we refer to the Virgene Project will absolutely be treated with kindness, respect, and compassion. That tenderness goes a long way for someone in a crisis.”

Support The Virgene Project

To learn more about The Virgene Project and how you can support its mission through donations, volunteering your time, or financial gifts, contact Sue Hobbins at 217-257-0707 or shobbins@adams.net.

Read the Full Story

This is a condensed version of The Virgene Project story. Click here to read the full story and learn more about Virgene Gilkerson and the life stories of Jim and Sue. 

Maureen Klues writes occasionally for Muddy River News. She recently started Memoirs by Maureen in the Quincy area. She will capture the story of an event, a story of one’s life or create a tribute for a person and put it together in a storybook format.