…………
Dear Bridget,
Firstly, I would like to thank you for
the effort you placed into my laundry bag and I’m absolutely stoked with it. It
has come at a very welcome time as we are unable to step ashore because of
COVID-19, so it gives me a nice sense of home and enjoyment.
I have been on board Toowoomba now for
nearly three years almost have of my enlisted service! Looking at heading to
Uni and become a paramedic in the future but we will have to see our things go
in this crazy world at the moment. I live with my partner and a 6-month-old
exotic short hair who is an absolute terror but strangely likes water. Once I
return and get to spend time at home, I’ll be getting an Australian Sheppard.
I hope you and your family are well and
keeping in high spirits despite the situation we all find ourselves in.
Kind regards,
…………
Dear Bridget
Thank you so much for the Quilt you made
me, I was over the moon when I received it, it looks bloody fantastic!
I asked my kids what they think I should
get made for a quilt and they came up with Ninja Turtles and Toy Story, they
will be excited to see it when I get home.
I’m also married with two children, boy
and a girl. My eldest, is turning 5 this Saturday and my Daughter who is 2
turning 3 in June. They definitely keep me going when I’m back home.
My wife is a primary school teacher so
she is kept super busy when I’m not home. She is a good egg this is our 3rd big
deployment away (second with kids). My first deployment was in 2011 then again
in 2016-17 and again now.
Oct will mark 13 years’ service for me in
this uniform with many more ahead. I joined at the age of 17 in 2007 and have
spent all my career in the West. I’m originally from QLD, my parents still live
there along with my brother and his wife and my sister moved to QLD where she
met her fiancée and they are due to get married next year.
Again, I can’t thank you enough for the
effort you have put into making my quilt I really appreciate the work gone into
it thank you so much.
Kind Regards
…………..
Bridget,
How are you? I hope you and your family are all
well considering the uncertain times for all at the moment, thanks to the
virus.
Firstly, I must apologies for the delayed
response. I have been forward for a number of weeks and only just returned to
my current location.
I just wanted to thank you for the EOD laundry
bag and quilt that you made for me. I really appreciate what you guys do,
considering everything going on both overseas and at home there is no better
feeling then to receive something in the mail that takes your mind of certain
things, all whilst putting a smile on your face.
The quilt is awesome! If I am going to be
totally honest, upon my eventual return home to my family it will be going on
my 2-year-old sons’ bed. However, until then I will get plenty of use out of
it.
Again I can thank you enough. I hope your family
husband, daughter and son are well during this time and I hope you all don't go
stir crazy under isolation especially with the two dogs. My guess now is that
they are both use to each other so fingers crossed.
Cheers,
……….
Dear Bridget
Sorry it has taken me so long to send you
this email, my beyond beautiful quilt arrived last week, I feel so lucky that
it made it through on our last mail delivery run.
I was so touched by your lovely work and
appreciate every part of it especially the delicate work of placing my children
names as requested, it was amazing.
My three children are aged 16, aged 15
and my youngest daughter is 6, I was supposed to head home on leave recently to
see them however everything in the world took a turn for the worst and along
with everyone else here my leave has been cancelled. We are lucky as Aussies
here on deployment that we have an excellent WIFI system and I can chat and see
my children on a regular basis. It also looks like my deployment will be
extended due to the lack of flights right now, it would only mean going into
quarantine once I got home anyway. I do miss them so much, however know this is
not forever.
It was lovely to receive your letter and
learn about your family, I hope you are all doing ok back home and I really
hope everything gets back to normal soon for you all.
Enjoy your retirement and quilting and
thank you once again..XOX
……….
Dear
Sue,
Thank
you so much for the amazing quilt, care package and all the goodies. A special
thank you for your craftmanship creating my quilt, it is exactly what I was
hoping for and more. You nailed the Hockey club colours and imagery, as you
noted; the club colours are pink & maroon, the club started off as a woman’s
only club about 50 years ago, and we have only had a men’s team since 2017.
Just a
little about myself.
My
family and I currently reside in SEQLD, we live on a small property and enjoy
the rural life over the city hustle and bustle. My daughter is experiencing the
first time her Father is deployed overseas, and has shown excellent resilience
for the last 6 months.
I have
served for just over 25 years and have deployed several times to date, however;
this is the first time I have received such a personalised gift.
I am
currently employed in a Logistics Support Role within a Q-Store, I have enjoyed
the experience to be deployed and carry out my role in an operational theatre.
Again,
Thank you very much for the quilt, and your support,
Kind
regards,
……….
G’day
Sue,
Thank
you for the awesome quilt, I love it!
I’m
originally from near Geelong, and my Grandparents lived nearby.
I can’t
blame you hubby for being a Tigers Fan, there a great team and are my second favourite
in AFL.
I
received the box of goodies 2 weeks ago, and the quilt arrived today. I was
getting worried it had been lost in the mail, but thankfully it’s here now.
The weather
is starting to warm up! I’m glad its close to the end of my tour, even thought
I have had a great experience.
The hockey
team was an all ladies team until 2017, then they let men play in the A2 level.
I have played two seasons with the club,
I love
my job, and thank you for your support.
Kind
regards
…….
Good morning Heather,
Hope you’re staying well amongst all this
COVID chaos!
Just wanted to say a massive thank you
for my Aussie Hero quilt and laundry bag that I received whilst on deployment
in the Middle East. I love it!!
Kind regards,
……….
Dear Wendy,
I hope this email finds you well. I
received the Quilt today (02 APR 20) and am genuinely impressed. The theme of
Australia and home is very close to me; therefore, I greatly appreciate you
taking the time to send it to me. In this current COVID climate, it is amazing
to have a daily reminder of my favourite place in the world. I found the
anecdotes about the wedding to be quite amazing. It is awesome that your
daughter and her husband will be coming home, always good to have family close
by. The way you write about your family is heart-warming, it very much struck a
chord with me.
A little bit of information about me:
I was born in Canberra; my father was a
Sailor in the Navy and my Mother is a Nurse. I moved around a lot as a child,
but did all of my high schooling in South Australia. Clearly my imagination for
future employment wasn’t very broad and I applied to join the Navy or Study
Nursing when I was in year 12. I joined the Navy in 2009 and undertook my
Officer training at ADFA. From then I spent a number of years in the fleet in a
variety of ships, with a highlight having been one of the first ‘ship drivers’
of HMAS Canberra. She’s our biggest ship and was quite a step up for a
25-year-old from Adelaide
I am now an Officer on Toowoomba, I lead
a team of 12 on a day to day basis, but am also the Command representative in
all things that happen within the ship when I am ‘on watch’. In the Middle East
this is a high tempo and highly demanding, yet, highly rewarding job. I
absolutely adore my ship and my ship mates; they make this whole job
worthwhile. I have a fantastic group of young Australians who I am afforded the
honour to lead. They really appreciated the Tim-Tams too.
We are in a period where COVID has
affected all of us in a great many ways. I just want you to know how much I appreciated
the thoughts in these uncertain times.
All the best,
Yours aye
…………
Good Morning Toni,
Firstly, I want to thank you from the
bottom of my heart for the laundry bag. I, and all of the soldiers serving
overseas appreciate what you are all doing for us.
The design I requested, musical in
nature, is more that this will allow me to remain connected to my family whilst
I am away. My wife is an early childhood music teacher, and therefore we have 3
very musical children. I, myself, cannot play anything, but I would like to
learn how to play the guitar one day.
My mother also worked in Nursing. She was
an EN at aged care and hospice facilities in the Newcastle and Bundaberg areas
before she became ill and passed away
last year. I am very grateful for all
that nurses do. Our local communities and country would not survive without
them, especially right now!
A little about me. I joined the Army as a
Communicator back in 1998. I have currently served in the full time Army for
the last 22+ years. I am a Warrant Officer Class One
. The Task Group is responsible to
provide all forms of communications in order to
achieve the Australian Defence Force
mission.
I am married and we have three children.
When in Australia, I am currently posted to NT, whilst my family reside in QLD.
At the end of this year, I am hoping to
post back to QLD so I can live with my Family. I have no plans to leave the Army
anytime soon and definitely have a long time before I can consider retirement.
Anyway, I just wanted to write quickly to
say THANK YOU! Everything you and the Aussie Hero team do for all current
serving members overseas is greatly appreciated.
Please continue with the great work that
you do to deliver laundry bags and quilts to our soldiers, sailors and
Airmen/women.
Kindest Regards
…………
Hi
Jenny,
just
thought I would let you know I received my quilt.
I
was stuck for words. Honestly it is fantastic. I have sent some pics to the
Fijian boys that are still in Egypt and they think it’s great.
I
enjoyed reading your letter and what you went through for your inspiration of
the quilts shows how much hard work and thought you put into it. It made me
laugh when you mentioned about dragging your other half into the quilt shop and
him seeing the fabric that ended up suiting the design perfectly.
The
self-isolation is no doubt difficult but would like to thank you for all the
work you do and it is very much appreciated.
You
have quite a history of sewing and it shows with the quality and care of the
work you do. I am glad you enjoy the mug and coin and it is the least I could
do as a small token to you.
Attached
to this email is a couple of pics I have taken.
Once
again, thank you very much.
Kind
regards,
.......
Donna,
Great to hear from you and I received the
quilt today. WOW fantastic.
You have made a beautiful quilt that I will
treasure and I have to say what a great organisation they are. Everyone I see
here has nothing but praise and love for their laundry bags and quilts.
This is my 6th time deploying to the Middle
East area of operations since 2003 and each time is so very different, I am
here as an Aircraft Technician and although I don't go into country with this
aircraft it is still all very different and exciting.
I know that business well, as I have lived in
the area and been there on many occasions with my daughter.
To tell you about me. I am 50 in Oct this year
and live on 4 acres we own just out of Newcastle. I have been in the Air Force since
93 and wouldn't trade my life for anything. A good portion of my family has
made it into the defence family. Both grandparents were army, my brother was
Air Force, my wife and I, my niece and nephew are Air Force and I have my
youngest daughter joining Air Force this year in June.
I'm Married (ex-defence. Go figure) with 3
daughters and a son, one granddaughter whose 1st birthday I will miss this
month and the new arrival since being here of the first grandson.
Thanks again Donna and please stay safe in
Australia too, ATM I think you guys are doing it harder than us here.
I will organise a photo of the quilt and
myself and forward it on to you soon.
Many thanks and regards
…………
Hi Pennie,
I just got my quilt and laundry
bag and want to say thank you so very much, they are amazing. I
appreciate the time and effort you have made into making my day brighter using
them. It is remarkably humbling to receive something that has been made
especially for me with so much care and attention. As a nurse (and especially
in this current health crisis) I am amazed at your generosity, donating your
precious time to volunteer to make quilts and bags for serving personnel.
Thank you again for the quilt, laundry bag and
goodies, receiving a piece of something from home is the most rewarding and
heartfelt feeling. What you do is so well received and just as important as
those of us serving in the Defence both here and in the Middle East Region and
throughout the world.
So again, thank you very much.
Kind Regards,
………
Sandy,
Thank you very much for the quilt that you and you team created for me.
It is absolutely amazing the job that you have all done and I could not
have asked for anything else. It made my day when I received it. Not only on my
behalf, but I have seen the smiles on the faces of my troops and fellow ships
company when they have received either their laundry or quilt.
I have been keeping an eye on the Aussie quilts Facebook page and the
fact that you can produce these quality quilts, especially in these times is
amazing. I can assure you that everyone on board really appreciates their
quilts.
Again, thanks to you and your team, Di, Judith and Jenny for your
efforts, I can assure you I will cherish my quilt for many years to come.
Cheers
…………..
Hello Heather,
I received your package yesterday and am very impressed with the laundry
bag. Thank you very much for making it and for the snack that came with it. Definitely
made my day!
I hope through all of this COVID-19 stuff you're still well. We are
hearing a lot of stories about people fighting over toilet paper of all things.
My family has told me stories about the things they've seen and it sounds like
there is a lot of unrest at home about this whole situation. Hopefully your
swimming club isn't affected too badly and if it is, I hope you’re able to
find a way around the rules to continue doing something you love. They
sometimes stop the ship in the middle of the ocean to allow us to go swimming
over the side of the ship. I've swam across the equator and the Mariana's
trench. The later was definitely the coolest. To think there were thousands of
meters of open water below me was really cool.
I just heard that they are closing the borders between states in Aus. I
hope you've got some back-pocket trips planned for around Queensland to ride
this epidemic out. Apparently, WA is closing down regions within WA as well to
stop the spread. Big travel restrictions now. Hopefully it doesn't last too
long.
It sounds like you have a good connection to the services. I was the
first in my family to join up. I really enjoy what I do. I work as a marine
electrical technician which is basically just a sparky on a ship. Keeping safe
out here no matter what we're doing.
I wish times were better back home but I'm sure you'll be keeping safe
and again thank you very much for the custom laundry bag. I love it!
Best regards,
…………….
Dear Donna,
I was lucky
enough to receive my Dobey (laundry) bag today and I would like say a huge and
heartfelt thank you. It is so uplifting to receive this gift from you and I
will honestly treasure it forever.
With all of
the uncertainty in the world, be it CORVID19 or politics, and being away from
friends and family in their times of need, this gift is a great reminder of why
we do it. Why all ADF personnel leave their loved ones in sometimes their
greatest time of need. We all do it because we are protecting our way of life
and its people like you who let me know I made the right decision to be away
from my wife and children for such a long time.
So once again thank you from the bottom of my heart for your gift, it’s amazing and as a big
Dragonball Z fan I could not have hoped for anything better.
P.S. Thanks
for sneaking in the Mentos they are actually my favorite.
Kind Regards
…………..
Keep calm and sew on.
