Tuesday 9 July 2019

Grati-Tuesday 9 Jul 19

Hey all, 

I know you are going to enjoy these messages.... Grab a cuppa and have a read......

Dear Gail,

Firstly I want to start by saying thank you!! Thank you for my beautiful quilt I received today. But before I go on about how much I love my quilt, I want to say how much I appreciate your letter and telling me a bit about yourself. The moment I opened the package, the first thing I did was read it. It allowed me to know about the person who has given their precious time to create something that I will cherish forever. I currently live within the Western Sydney area. So it was great to hear that you aren’t too far down the road. I love that you have so many interesting hobbies and enjoy such precious time with your family and have had the opportunity to travel. As you probably guess I have 2 beautiful children myself, nearly 3 and  just turned 4 in June. Still both quite little but very much a handful, which I wouldn’t change for the world.

My quilt request had all the things my children love and I wanted to have a piece of that over here on deployment, because it reminds me of all the times I’ve snuggled up on the couch with my little cherubs and watched dinosaurs, cars, the Wiggles and Frozen about a million times over. It was my first time ever being away from my children since they’ve been born, so having that piece of home would help make my time here a little easier. This quilt has given me that and so much more. Your vision is beyond anything I could have ever imagined and has filled my heart with so much happiness. The work and time you have put into this quilt is truly inspiring. I absolutely love my quilt and every time I see it, it puts a massive smile on my face. The moment I unfolded it, it literally took my breath away and immediately took a photo to send to my husband. His reaction was “WOW just WOW”. He was just as blown away as I was and amazed what had been created from only a few ideas. A few photos are attached, with one of how it looks on my bed. It’s perfect. If that wasn’t enough you even threw in some Tim Tams and Snakes…my favourite. They have definitely made the other ladies I work with very very happy J

I cannot be more appreciative of the time you have given for the members deployed overseas. You provide us with a creature comfort that is truly personal, to brighten up our rooms and make the space on deployment our own. It’s these things that help us get through the tough times when we’re missing our loved ones and struggling with the time apart. It allows us to take a moment and look at something that is a reflection of our lives from back home and remember what we have waiting for us when we return. We are all so blessed to have people like you that give so much out of the kindness of your own heart. Your generosity is overwhelming and I will never forget what you have done for me.

Thank you so much again for this absolutely gorgeous, wonderful, amazing quilt. I cannot wait to get home and show my children. They will adore it just as much as I do.


Kindest regards


.....

G'Day Jan-Maree,

I am writing to say a huge thank you to you and to Sue Pmr for the outstanding work, you ladies have put into making my Laundry Bag and Quilt. I am absolutely gobsmacked at the design of the quilt and it now lays proudly on my bed, adding some much need vibrancy and colour to my room.  As mentioned I kept my idea behind the quilt a surprise from my wife.  She thinks it's absolutely beautiful and was a little bit sentimental that I thought of a family tree. Furthermore, my kids gasped with amazement when they saw it on Skype as well.

The people around the HQ love the quilt too as I have shown it off to all the sections. They too think it was a great idea asking for a family tree, that's when I threw in the cheeky remark that a lot of people want military themed quilts and I just wanted to be out of the norm... I received a few colourful words back (from a couple of mates) with my comment too!

Please pass on my sincere thanks to Sue for her great idea of the tree, the colours, the indigenous artwork backing and fine needlework. It is far more in-depth than what I would have done (I was thinking of a stereotypical tree drawn by a grade two student) the work and thought that has gone into my quilt would have taken more hours than I could imagine. (the kids liked the geckos/lizards on the tree trunk too).

I can not be more thankful for the great work that Aussie-Hero-Quilts do for the troops and now I have a piece of history that I can pass down to my children, as I hope they do the same til it becomes a family heirloom.

Many thanks again I am thoroughly impressed :) 

Kind regards

(PS What we have covered up in the photo is the names of the recipient and his family)


.....

 Hi Helen,


I am one of the crew members on board HMAS Success who received one of the lovely laundry bags donated to us by Aussie Hero Quilts. 

I've been in the Navy for about a year now as a Midshipman learning to drive the ships, and on Success since March to complete sea familiarisation coursework. Sometimes I'd see members of ships company carrying around their own unique, quilt laundry bags and I thought they were so cool. 

So when I heard that I'd get to have one of my own, I was so excited to see what comes up. The Mexican themed laundry bag that you created was an obvious choice as I love Mexican food, fiestas, siestas, all of it! Already it's been put to good use carrying bulk loads of washing around. So I'd like to give you a big thank you for your lovely gift.

Keep up the great work!

Kind regards,
......


Dear Helen,



I am writing to thank you for your kind and generous gift, the laundry bag you have made me has certainly been put to good use so far! It came at a much needed time as my old one was starting to get a few holes in it and nearing the end of its life.



I read your letter which accompanied the laundry bag and was pleasantly surprised when I saw that it had come from a fellow Penrith local. I was born in Nepean Hospital and lived in Jamisontown for several years before moving up the Blue Mountains to Springwood where I lived until I joined the Navy in July of last year.



I am a Sub Lieutenant on board HMAS Success and we have recently returned from completing the international exercise Indo-Pacific Endeavour 19 which saw us travel to Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia. This was an enjoyable experience, especially as it was my first sea posting as well as my first overseas deployment. As enjoyable as this time was, after being away for 4 months there was no better feeling than coming back home to see my family and friends.


At the end of our deployment our ship decommissioned which was a privilege to be a part of. After 33 years of faithful service, it was time to let Success finally get the fitting end that she deserved. 

Once again I would like to thank you for your support and your work for Aussie Hero Quilts. The work that you do is appreciated immensely by the crew and all serving members of the Australian Defence Force.

Kind Regards,
.....


Kaye,

I was pleased to receive the laundry bag in the mail and I would like to take the opportunity to say thank you.

You know my name but to tell you a little more about me – I am currently serving on OPERATION ACCORDIAN in the Middle East Region.  I work in the Headquarters Joint Task Force, which provided command direction and support to Australian deployed forces all over the Middle East Region.

I’m from North Queensland and I joined the Army late 1990’s. I have a Batchelor of Commerce, so I’m an accountant and joined the Royal Australian Army Pay Corps (RAAPC) in order to be a finance specialist. I have previously deployed to East Timor and the Middle East in my finance specialty.

It is challenging time to be away from family and friends, and I sincerely thank you for your contribution to supporting deployed Australian Forces, particularly me and the laundry bags you have sent over. All the troops over here talk about the quilts and laundry bags they have received and show pictures to one another.

Please know we are doing our best to represent and protect Australia wherever we may be, so it is very humbling to know that people like you are thinking of us during these long periods away from our loved ones.

Thanks again
......

Dear Kristie,
                                Thank you so much for my laundry bag! It’s absolutely amazing and definitely it the nail on the head.  I am a mad fan of Game of Thrones but I totally think your record is commendable. Good Effort! 

Two young boys probably brings just as much challenges as my job does, if not more! I think what you and the Aussie Hero Quilts & Laundry Bags do is amazing and definitely brings some colour to where we are.

Yes it is bloody hot here and we would love some of your weather right now!
Again, I can’t thank you enough for my bag! And the tim tams!

Hope you and your family have a beautiful year!
.....

Dear Clarissa,

I recently was very thrilled to receive your hand-made laundry bag! I have to say that it’s simply fantastic! I love how you were able to include some of my passions in the design – rugby, cricket and motorbikes. Great stuff! And the signature panel from Josh Mann-Rea is very cool and I now have boasting rights with my dad and father-in-law. Ha ha! A big thank you to your nephew for helping out there. I see he recently became a father too – congrats all round.

This is my first deployment, after 26 years or service, and so being fortunate to receive something special from home was important for me, and maybe one day I’ll be able to tell my grandkids about it.

So, I’m from Canberra and our family also lives there; we have three boys aged 15, 13 and 9. My wonderful wife is a part-time high school teacher, and with soccer, swimming and hockey (for her) she has her hands very full. I’m just over half way through this 6 ½ month deployment and we all cannot wait for me to get home.

There’s bits of military in my family history. Both of my parents were RAAF and one of my brothers was a Navy pilot. Both of Mum’s parents were also RAAF pre and during WWII. Pop was in Darwin during the many air raids there. In his youth in the 30’s he was in the Light Horse before it was disbanded. One of Dad’s great uncles was a bomber pilot for the NZ air force in WWII, and incredibly both of his (Dad’s) grandfathers met in a field hospital in France as wounded NZ Army soldiers in WWI, before they even had children!

On my wife’s side, her dad was badly wounded in Vietnam and one of her grandfathers was RAN in WWII. So, putting that all together, it was a privilege to experience ANZAC Day here whilst on operations. We had a great turnout for the ceremony, which was hosted by us Aussies and Kiwis, but also the Brits and Turks who are here, and then we had people come to participate/watch from Canada, USA, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Holland, Spain, France and Poland.

Again, thank you sincerely for the bag and your time and effort to put it all together – it’s hugely appreciated.

Best wishes and kind regards,

P.S. Ooops! I nearly forgot – thanks also for the TimTams which are like gold over here – Yum! 

......

Dear Bridget 

         I just received your package from aussie hero quilts a week before i am to go on leave after being in Afghanistan for almost 5 months. The incredible attention to detail for my extremely specific request set all the boys to laughter at the classic scene from the castle and was an incredible reminder of home after a long time away. The boys appreciate everything you guys do in your valuable spare time. 

                Thank you for your contribution to our country as a nurse and for lending your time to create quilts and bringing some smiles to our faces.

Warm regards 
.....

Good afternoon Ruth,

I received my Laundry bag in the post yesterday and wanted to say a great big thank you!!

Canberra is my home town, and being away overseas from my family and friends is hard, so I wanted something to remind me of home. You did just that. It’s Perfect and definitely brightened my day.

I have attached a photo, I’m in the middle along with my work family.

Warm regards


.....

And finally, I shared this story on Facebook yesterday but here you are for the Non-Facebookers....

I went to Melbourne to attend the opening of a Veteran’s Advocacy Centre. After all the speeches and the ribbon cutting I was sitting down when a lady walked up to me smiling and said “I’m going to talk to you because you have a name badge on so you must be important”....I think what happened next was she actually read my name and “Aussie Heroes” and she just smiled and said “can I give you a hug? I have one of your quilts!” 

She was a reservist and had been in Al Minhad Air Base and received a beautiful horse themed Laundry bag and a Game of Thrones Quilt made by Pennie! 😊 

I always tell quilters that you need to meet a recipient to understand how much our defence members appreciate what we do. You will hear it in their voice, see it in their eyes, or feel it in the warmth of their handshake or their hug! And... for me... it never gets old!



.....

Til next time, keep spreading the word and happy stitching!

Jan-Maree xx


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