Grati-Tuesday

Well, these Grati-Tuesday posts are becoming a bit of a habit and one that i could get used to.  I, and I suspect a lot of you, never tire of reading the wonderful and sometimes very touching thank you messages we receive nor do I tire of seeing quilts on beds and, even better, with people!  

First a quick request.  I do not have time to email all of you individually as ask how you are going with your current quilts but I do need to know that you are on track for my peace of mind and also to be confident that we are not taking on more than we can cope with.  I don't want to take on more requests if someone is struggling to complete what they have taken on and might need a hand.   Can YOU please email me and give me an update if you have a request from TOOWOOMBA that you are working on and also if you have a request that you have had for more than a couple of weeks.  That way I can tick off names and just chase the ones that I don't hear from.  What  I would like to know is if you are experiencing any problems or difficulties in finishing whichever request you have taken on and also I would really appreciate your best estimate for completion and posting.  

Now I hope you will sit back and relax and enjoy the lovely messages that follow.

Dear Michele,

Thank you for your quilt and kind thoughts, as you can see I have put your quilt to good use straight away on my bed. I think it fantastic that you put so much effort and care into an item for people you don't know.

Once again thank you for the great work your doing.

Hi Janine, thank you for the lollies and laundry bag that you so kindly sent me. I have put both to good use already, thank you. I have seen on the news that Aust has a big heat wave at the moment so I hope it's not too hot on the Sunshine Coast, and I hope it cools down very where soon as well so the fire danger dies off.

I have seen a lot of your quilts and laundry bags kicking around over here and that's why I'm not fussed to use the laundry bag you made for me as it is very bright and my mates would give me XXXX if they didn't have something similar themselves. Ha ha!

But, in all seriousness it is very good quality and I bet it will last the rest of my deployment and many after that too so thank you very much for your time it took to make it.

Thank you.

Hi Jan-Maree,

Just wanted to thank you for the wonderful quilt I received and for your ongoing support of deployed personnel.

Deployments do have their moments and knowing that we are supported by people like you, makes us proud to represent Australia.

Thanks again and kind regards, 

I received the following thank you message and it is our first from HMAS TOOWOOMBA!  
Yes, some of the quilts have started to arrive!

Good Evening Jan-Maree, 

We had one of those rare mail drops today and look at me grinning (oh you can't see me) but I am.   I received my Quilt and Laundry bag packed with Chocolates from Michele, absolutely amazing - it's not until you actually see them, and think of the hours and loving care put into the making of them, that you realise what wonderful talented people there are out there.

She also placed a lovely letter in with it bless her, honestly it's so nice to know that there are people out there, not from the defence community, watching out for us and who are prepared to give up their time to put a smile on our faces.

A big big thankyou from me and my wife for caring.

 

And then Michelle received this thank you as well - 

  

Michele, 

A big big hello and lovely to meet you!!

Imagine my surprise this morning when I open my parcel, not only do I get a gorgeous quilt and laundry bag but you put chocolates in as well. Honestly Michele people like you are rare gems, I've been doing this job for just under 32 years, 25 of them in the Royal Navy and almost 7 in the Royal Australian Navy.

God bless, making the quilt must have really drawn on your patience if you're a control freak and only get snippets at a time on how to construct it.  (Reference to it being Kylie's Mystery Quilt Pattern)  Rest assured the finished product is beautiful and adding the Dorothea Mackellars poem was a perfect finishing touch. In the short time I've been an Australian, my wife, twins and I have travelled by road from Cairns through to Kalbarri in WA (different Journeys of course) but the people we've met along the way and the things we've seen have been amazing - the Poem sums it up really.

Thankyou ever so much for my gifts " 

And another one from Toowoomba this time refering to a quilt made by Tess (Vic)

Hi Jan-Maree
I received my quilt in the mail yesterday, thank you very much. It's great as soon as I opened it I put in on my bed and used it straight away.  Please pass on my regards to my quilter for me. Its great getting parcels from home especially from others that aren't family, it reminds me that there are still people thinking of us back home. When ever I go to sea I'll be sure to bring it with me. Once again thank you very much for the opportunity to receive one.

Hi Jan
Just wanted to let you know that the I received the quilt and laundry bag today.  Thankyou for your organising this for myself and other deployed personnel.  I will write to the ladies that made the items in the near future.

Regards

Dear Keryn,

        Thank you for the care package and especially the lovely quilt. It’s obvious that you put a lot of work into it and I truly appreciate the thought and effort. It’s hard being away from home and although it’s my third deployment it never seems to get any easy being away from my family.

            Winter in Afghanistan is certainly not like the winters we get back home. It’s cold, really cold and I don’t know how the locals survive year after year. 

        Again thank you for your support. 

Liz was given two lovely 24" hand made Mariner's Compass blocks and she felt the resulting quilts should go to someone appropriate.  We found a recipient in the RAN and they seemed a perfect match.  

When I got back from work a few nights ago & saw that I had a package marked AUSSIE HERO QUILT, I was pretty excited.  When I saw the design I immediately fell in love with it - I did think straight away that it looked like a compass rose! and then very carefully holding it, I opened the letter which was wonderful and honestly bought tears

 I do feel extremely privileged to have received something with so much history behind it.

As often happens there is more to the letter than I am comfortable with sharing as I try not to publish anything to personal (unless I can contact the author personally and seek their approval of a selected excerpt from their letter).  I also don't want to publish anything that makes the recipient identifiable to anyone that knows them.  Suffice to say that this quilt really touched a chord for reasons that Liz could not have known and you would be surprised how often that unwittingly happens within Aussie Heroes.

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