Mindy King

Veteran · Founder · Chief Stitcher

Life rarely follows a straight line. Just ask Mindy King. She didn’t enlist right out of high school; instead, she went to college first. But as she neared the end of her studies, she felt a pull toward something different. That pull led her to the Army at age 22, where she found her place in the sky as a Blackhawk door gunner and crew chief.

However, when medical retirement abruptly ended her service in 2011, the silence that followed was deafening.

Mindy struggled to find her footing in civilian life. She battled the heavy weight of PTSD, trying every therapy in the book, from sitting in sterile offices talking about feelings to more experimental modalities. Nothing seemed to work. The internal noise wouldn’t stop.

As a last resort, a counselor suggested art therapy. Mindy was skeptical, but she picked up a needle and thread anyway. She began hand-sewing hearts onto pieces of felt to create ornaments shaped like states and countries, tracing her family’s military journey. To her surprise, the simple, rhythmic motion of occupying her hands finally gave her mind the peace she had been searching for.

That therapeutic hobby stitched itself into a thriving business: Heart’felt’ Travels.

Today, Mindy has traded hand-sewing for four industrial embroidery machines she affectionately names Ruby, Rosie, Rico, and Brody. She has expanded her repertoire far beyond felt hearts; if you need custom logo wear for your business, personalized hats for a family reunion, or intricate patches for a club, Mindy can handle it all. She applies the same mission-focused discipline she learned in the aviation crew to create these custom items for our community. Behind each design is a story that matters…like the time she embroidered a baby’s sonogram onto an ornament for a military family separated by deployment. That single item became the focal point of their Christmas card, connecting them despite the distance.

Now serving as the Commander of VFW Post 101, she jokes she is a “professional volunteer,” using her business to fund her passion for giving back. Mindy proves that while the uniform changes, the drive to serve never fades.