Grati-Tuesday

Greetings all.  

Three weeks now till our next dinner in Sydney.

The date has been finalised for Tuesday the 11th of March as that is the day that most people can make it. 

 Dasha has kindly put her hand up to help get it organised by coordinating what everyone is bringing so that we don't end up with a hugely laden desert table and a half empty savoury table.  I afraid I am calling dibs on the desert as I plan to do something in advance as I will be so busy in the lead up to the dinner.  Dasha will coordinate everyone else so if you are coming can you please send me an email that I can forward on to Dasha so that she can contact you with all the details.    

Requests are out

The latest request list went out by email yesterday so if anyone wants to see it but missed out please let me know.  

and now for a few thank you messages.

This following quilt was made by Carla and quilted by Diane.

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This thank you for a quilt top made by Julie and quilted by Stephanie T

Thank you Jan-Maree for sending the quilt. I really appreciate the effort you make in coordinating the quilts. It's something I will hang on to for years to come and it will be a constant reminder of the generosity fellow Australians can have towards one another. 

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This thank you for a quilt made by Christine C from WA is just a little bit special!

Warning CUTENESS overload!!!

Hello,

My husband received one of your beautiful aussie hero quilt while he was deployed overseas last year & we wanted to send you some pictures of our baby daughter using it as her play mat.

Thank you for this special gift. 

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Tthe following was for a quilt top made by Sue N (SA) and quilted by Stephanie T

  I'm on HMAS Melbourne.  Just letting you know I received my quilt and its beautiful 

I love it.  Its been so cold on the ship lately and that extra blanket on my rack is so good.  I will send you a letter and photo by post too. Thankyou so much for this wonderful thing you are doing for people serving away from home its a huge boost for everyone. 

Thank you again,

.....

 Jan-Maree 

        I would like to express my gratitude for the work you and your volunteers put in to support the deployed ADF personnel.  I use my quilt and laundry bag daily and I always stop and think about the time and effort a total stranger has put in to support deployed ADF members.  My wife, two boys and I, serve meals to the homeless at Christmas each year.  This has been an important part of the way we have raised our two sons.  So when I go home and show them the quilt and laundry bag, I hope the message they take away will be that volunteering for a cause that is important to them will make a difference to the lives of those that receive the support.  Again thank you for your support.

        I look forward to may years of use from my quilt and laundry bag. 

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Dear Jan-Maree

Many thanks for the email, and also for the laundry bag and biscuits waiting for me when I got back! Got back from Singapore last night, where had very relaxing 2 weeks with my wife. We didn't do much, just some casual sight-seeing - was a lot warmer than Dubai, but amazingly didn't rain for entire time that were there. Laundry bag is very nice, in fact I am using it as a pillow case, as it is the right size, and adds a touch of colour to the room. The biscuits are sitting on my desk, but being eyed off by my colleagues, so not sure how long they will last! Was good watching some Australian TV in Singapore on Australia Network, so caught up on a bit of news - talk about heatwave in Adelaide and Melbourne.

Many thanks once again. Work still busy and inbox overflowing with emails!

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This fellow has just taken over as one of our laundry bag distributors.  The OC he is talking about is his Office Commanding

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Jan-Maree

Thank you so much for the thoughts for the soldiers. 

You ladies do a wonderful job and are extremely creative with what you do. The laundry bags were well received and appreciated by all.

Please pass on my OC's and my many thanks to all of the ladies.

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Joan

I don't know where to begin to say how pleased, thankful and over the moon I was to receive my laundry bag today!  

It is me down to a tee and I absolutely loveeeeee it and showed everyone where I work.   I can't thank you enough but today was the first day I actually missed home and felt a little down.  Then after lunchtime my laundry bag arrived and I was so happy to know that people out there care and support us.

Thank you from the bottom of my heary.

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Dear Alice,

I am currently in of Afghanistan serving as a driver around the surrounding areas. 
I have not been in the army for long so I am extremely lucky to have gotten this
opportunity to be over here doing a job that most spend their careers trying
to snatch. I was in the right place at the right time I guess. I am enjoying
it so much that I haven't even begun counting down the days till I am home
or anything like that.

Thankyou so so much for making the quilt for me, the design is rightful my
alley. Crazy how much a few colours and patterns can give you comfort
mentally. You definitely get sick of seeing green around here... The quilts
keeps us balanced and puts things in perspective I think. Just reminds you
of what to be greatful back home in the riches of opportunities and safety.

Well please thank your daughter for discovering the blog page for the Aussie
hero quilts, and even more thanks to you for chasing it up. You are doing a
wonderful thing for all you make quilts for.

Hope you and your family are living well and enjoying life,
.....

And now a few photos to share.  Firstly these two have been on facebook but I wanted to non-facebook followers to see them too.

Special thanks to Debbie M and Jan M  for making and sending me this great gift and letter today.  Best wishes for your farm and family. 

 Your generosity towards serving soldiers means a lot.

Thank you Joan and Robin for this. It's far too nice to put my dirty washing in!  Thank you for your kindness :-)

Finally Caroline and I received some photos of two smiling recipients that we made quilts. This quilt was made my Caroline.

And this quilt was made my myself. 

It is always great to see those smiles.

And I loved these smiles too.  Meet Maddy and Kylie.  Maddy's father received a quilt and a laundry bag recently and so she decided that it would be nice if she could make a laundry bag to send to someone else's father whilst they were deployed.  This is Maddy's first attempt at sewing with some help from Mum.  Didn't she do an awesome job!  And they didn't stop at one, they started a second laundry bag as well and are planning to come back to the next sewing day in Penrith as well! 

Till next time...................keep spreading the word and happy stitching!  JMxx