Grati-Tuesday 16 September

Hi all!  If you look at our Facebook Page you will have seen our new Cover Photo.  Pretty awesome huh! I know I speak for everyone who sews for AHQ when I say that we REALLY APPRECIATE you all taking the time to arrange these photos for us and for gaining approval for us to use them.  

Thanks very much all concerned!

For those of you who can't see Facebook here is the awesome cover photo.

And now for some more awesome photos and messags.

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Hi Su

Thank you very much for the quilt you sent me. I love it. The family love it too.

It definitely won't end up on the dogs bed as you suggested may happen. I’m actually contemplating using it as a wall hanging. I have attached photos of me with the quilt in front of one of our aircraft in the middle east. There are also some photos of other members with their quilts. Personally I think mine is the best : )

I’m sorry for the late thank you. The photos (above and below) were taken by an official photographer and we had to wait for them to be approved to be used (due to security and what may have been in the background). 

I very much appreciate the work you put into making the quilt. I think it is a great thing you are doing.  Its appreciated by all personnel that receive them. You will be able to see from the photos the happiness they give to the personnel. I will always look after it and it will be a great reminder of a great time in my life.

I loved the print of the aircraft on the quilt. That got the biggest reaction when I have showed it. I love the AKA DAKA guitar and the “All in the name of liberty” line. You certainly did your research 

: )   Thanks also for the laundry bag it was great too.

Thanks again. I couldn't have wished for a better quilt.

With great appreciation and kind Regards

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Dear JM and fellow quilters,

An Aussie Hero Quilt and laundry bag should be part of your kit issue. Ironically were given details upon getting here to place requests to complete a homely look into our very basic bland rooms which can sometimes feel like an asylum...

While JM told me there was a bit of a wait on my AHQ she assured me it was special and worth waiting for...

The day I received my package I was so excited to have a parcel and my quilt... Purple being a favourite colour but the cartoon nurses were not only appropriate but funny... It wasn't until later I noticed the extraordinary stethoscope stitching which blew my mind...

I love my AHQ and we spend a lot of time cuddled up in bed reading, studying or watching movies... I am hoping one day to pass this on and keep as an ongoing reminder of my deployment overseas.

Keep up the excellent work ladies, your work over here just makes the days and lonely nights of all overseas serving troops and a nice reminder that we are appreciated xxx

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Good Morning Jenny, 

                                            I have received the lovely quilt and laundry bag and notebook cover that you have so generously made for me. I was truly moved by your letter and I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your work. You have hit the nail on the head. Your letter reminded me of my upbringing and where I come from. I was born and raised on the Fraser Coast in Queensland. In my younger days I lived on a cattle property where I assisted my family run over 200 head of cattle. The school I attended was all cattle farming kids and it was not out of the ordinary to have a few days off to assist with a muster. Your story of where you come from allowed me to re-live those days. Thank you. People like yourself make me feel proud to be Australian and proud to serve you and our country. 

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Louise T, 

Please thank your quilters for the lovely quilt that arrived today.  The colours and patterns are wonderful.   Once I return from this deployment it will be placed in our caravan to remind me of my time in the Navy.   The colours match the interior. 

We may be away on deployment; however, your thoughts and gifts are very much appreciated. 

This will probably be my last deployment as I am getting ready to retire, or maybe semi-retire at least, in the near future.   I will be posting ashore after Christmas and then will need to make some more decisions: 

When will be the best time to leave the Navy; 

When is the best time for my wife and I to commence our journey around the inside of Australia for the next year of two. I have seen it from the outer for the past 35 years. 

Thank you again for the beautiful quilt. 

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This was posted on Facebook 1by the wife of this recipient with the following message

"Thank you to the wonderful volunteers that take part in making these beautiful quilts. My husband received his today and would like to say a big thank you for his fish themed quilt."

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And another one from Facebook for Bennie

"I got my quilt on the weekend absolutely love it thank-you Aussie Hero Quilts."

Hi Sue,

It was so lovely to get your parcel & the quilt looks great on my bed.

My Mother-in-law is from XXXXX & I have told her about Aussie Hero Quilts so I am hoping some of the ladies from the CWA might start quilting for such a great organisation.

Thanks again & I hope your family & the cats continued to be pampered.

Cheers

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Good morning Jan-Maree,

Life is a little busy up here. I received my quilt the other day and all I want to say is thank you so very much, I love it. It looks amazing and I couldn't of asked anything more of it.

I would like to say thank you  for founding such an amazing organisation, even though I can't speak for everyone I can tell that everyone who receives a quilt or laundry bag appreciate what you and all your members do for us. It brings the biggest of smiles to our faces when we open up our parcels to find beautifully hand crafted quilts and laundry bags.

IPlease thank Lynn and Liz B for their time spent on my Quilt and tell them how much I love it.  Also before I forget, thank you for your service to Australia.

I wish you the best of luck and nothing but happiness for your future.

Kind Regards, 
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Good morning Jan-Maree

I would like to say thankyou very much for the Quilt it is unreal and I am so happy with it.

Over the next week or two I will be sending a photo of me with it to the quilter (Irene) 

Once again thankyou very much and greatly appreciated.

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Dear Rita M, 

I was thrilled today to receive your lovely quilt and wash bag. I must say it far exceeded my expectations and I will treasure it for many years to come. 

It has certainly brought, as you say, a little bit of joy into our deployment and a whole lot more. The thought that someone would go to so much trouble for us is heartwarming to say the least. 

We hope to get a photograph of all of us with our quilts in front of our fine ship. If this is possible (given our hectic program) I will endeavour to send you a copy. 

Thank you for recognising our work. Whilst we do not seek praise or thanks,  it buoys us when we do. 

Please take care, and thank you again for your fantastic efforts, I'm sure I will play much better golf now that I have such a wonderful piece of artwork to remind me of happy times. 

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Hey Jan-Maree!  Yes! I received the quilt! It was perfect!

I only received it recently because I broke my thumb up there and came back in early June. I have just returned to work. Sorry for the late reply/thank you!

I had no idea what to expect with it, but it was incredible! The quality, colours, but more so the time, effort and care that so obviously went into it was outrageous!  We're actually using it as a curtain/door at the moment and it looks great. Everybody who comes over asks where I got it and how much it cost and are blown away when I tell them it was done out of love and for free.

The job you guys do is appreciated so much by everyone. Every little helps when you're away for so long. I never thought I'd see people in 40 degree heat stoked to receive a Quilt!  Even if they were average, the gesture and thought behind it would still make them great. But they couldn't be further from average!

We are just doing what we're told. If I was sent to Alaska for months, then that's what I have to do. But you do it off your own back. 

Thanks heaps, you guys are awesome!

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Good afternoon Irene,

Just a quick email to let you know that I received your gorgeous quilt and letter that you sent me. I appreciate all the time and dedication that you put into my quilt and all the quilts that you make!! I absolutely love it and can not thank you enough!

I enjoyed reading your letter so that I knew more about yourself and why you enjoy quilting. Receiving the package and letter brightened up my day and I thank-you so much for it!

I will treasure the quilt that you have made and how you have personalised it for me without knowing me in person.

Thanks again, you are an amazingly remarkable lady!

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Dear Jan-Maree,

I am writing to let you know I received my hero quilt during our recent port visit, my wife and I absolutely love it. It will have a special place in my cabin and then our home when I get back.

Thank you for your letter, its nice to read a little a bit about the woman behind the quilts. you are doing a wonderful thing.

The Chaplain has been taking lots of photo's of the quilts and I'm sure he will send them through to you when he has a good collection.

Thank you again.

Kind Regards 

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Dear Joan and Robin,

I wanted to write you a quick email to let you know I received my laundry bag. I'm sorry it has taken so long but we have had a bit of a delay getting mail in.   It has really brightened up my cabin and I appreciate all the work you have put into it. I know everyone who has received a laundry bag is very grateful, I will treasure mine. I have sent you a postcard which I hope finds you well but it may take some time with the slow post.

Thank you again.

Best Wishes,

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I am the Officer in HMAS Toowoomba  who you recently sent a laundry bag to. I think the bag is just marvelous and captured my love of coffee very well! Many of the people who I work with have commented on how nice the bag is, I think maybe even too good for my dirty washing.  

In HMAS Toowoomba I am the ships Navigating Officer which means that I am responsible for the planning and execution of the ships movement in an out of port and how we sail from place to place. The job is busy but very interesting and also quite unique because I am the only person on my ship who has the qualification that I hold. This often means long days and short nights are required to get the work done. I am supported by an amazing team though and the ship has an excellent Command Team which makes the work that I do much easier and is great preparation for the jobs that I will have in the future. 

Once again thank you so much for your efforts on my behalf. It is fantastic to know that the job we do is appreciated at home. 

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Hilary,

I would like to say thank you for the Quilt that I received from you. It is fantastic and I am extremely happy with it. Both the quilt and the laundry bag thatI  I asked for arrived on my birthday so that was a good day for me.  I hope you are well, and thank you for the letter. Thank you and your husband for your service before me, without you guys there is a chance I wouldn't be doing what I am doing today. 

Again I would like to say thank you for the quilt.

Kind regards

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Good Afternoon Debbie,

I just wanted to say thank-you for making a fantastic quilt.  I really appreciate your support and the time you have put into making my Aussie Hero Quilt.   As you can tell with my quilt, I am a die hard Collingwood supporter, I was born into a Collingwood household. 

I have attached a photo of me with my quilt so hopefully a photo explains a thousand words on how much I appreciate your work and everyone with Aussie Hero Quilts who have made our deployment that little bit easier.

Once again I just want to say Thank you for the amazing present and of course the Tim Tams! 

The Ship's Company really appreciate your work.

Thank you,

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Dear Jan-Maree

Thank you so much for your email. My Aussie Hero Quilt arrived yesterday and words cannot express how much joy it brought me to receive this care package! I don't have any family back in Australia, and it will most likely be the only mail I receive whilst on deployment... our mess is a sea of colours with our beautiful quilts which is an absolute delight after 18months of dull grey!!

I have begun writing a long letter to the lady "Libby" who made my quilt and hope to send it off in our next port visit. Could you please pass on my sincerest thanks to all the ladies who donate their time and efforts into making what will be life long treasures for those of us away from home so often. These handmade gems are more than just patches sewn together - to many of us they will act as a reminder of the comforts of home, and knowing that while we are away we aren't forgotten. 

Thank you again, 

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Hi Rita,

I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for the quilt and laundry bag that you made for my. They are both great and brighten up my bunk so much. On board the ship I am within the engineering department. A normal day for me consists of two 4 hour watches in the machinery control room and 4 hours of maintenance and defect rectification in my 'off watch' period.

Thank you again for your time and effort.

Kind regards, 

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Hi Rita, 

I have just received the quilt and I am very appreciative of your amazing talent and attention to detail that you have placed in making this wonderful quilt. I have even noticed the fine detail on the RAEME badge with the hand drawing of hooves and body shape. 

Again, I thank you very much :)

Kindest regards

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Hi Rita AKA Granny Smith!

MI have recently received a quilt from you!

Firstly, thank you so much for putting your time and effort into making me a Southampton quilt, I absolutely love it!! The weather has been quite warm of late and my doonah is too warm, so since I have received the quilt, I've used it every night as it is the perfect temperature.

I just celebrated my 25th birthday yesterday.  I got very lucky in that I received the quilt just three days before my birthday, so it was like getting a present on the ship which was very nice! 

We are having a good time up here, working hard but still enjoying ourselves. But I cant wait to get home and spend Christmas with my girlfriend and our two dogs 

I can't thank you enough for the work and effort you put into making my quit, I wish there was something I could do to repay you.

We appreciate the support we get from back home when we are out here serving our country, and gestures like yours go a long way to remind us just how much everyone back home is proud of us.

Once again, thank you for the time you have put into the quilt, I will cherish it for many years to come. 

I hope all is well for you and your family, and hope the weather in the Barossa Valley is a lot cooler than up here in the Middle East, 

Kindest Regards,

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Hello Jan-Maree,

Yesterday I received my Aussie Hero quilt safe and sound (it got held up in the mail while I was changing location).

Thank you very much for the quilt, I love it! Plenty of great patterns.

It will get plenty of use as I travel around here and often stay in transit accommodation, so it will be a very worthy travel companion.

And it will also be something that I will take away with me from this deployment (along with my laundry bag) which I will get plenty of use from in my future travels.

Thank you to yourself and the quilters for all you do. 

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Hi Leanne,

First thing I love my new quilt and washing bag. The time and care you have put into these items Is just stunning. I can tell you that all of us here in the sand really love our quilts and often show them off to each other. So from all of us service boys and girls here on deployment, Thank you and thanks to all the other quilters back at home. They really do mean so much to us.

I hope you had a great time down at RAAF Richmond as that is my base and even though it is a bit old and worn out its not a bad place to work. 

Things are very busy here and only getting more so. I work with a team that supplies all of the communications to everyone on base and this keeps the planes flying so its a very interesting job. The days here are hot as you may think, its only 45 degrees now days unlike the near 60 when we first turned up. It will be great to get home next year back to lake Macquarie and my boats and to be able to sit back with my wife and my young bloke and have a beer.

This is my third trip to the desert and I think it will be my last as I am missing out on my little man growing up and as you know only to well with your kids you can't get it back.

Thanks again for your great gift and I really did like reading a proper hand written letter, we don't see to many of those now days and it took me back to when I was a younger man before all of this high tech stuff we now use took over.

I hope this email finds both you and John in good health and enjoying the start of another Aussie summer. Take care.

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Hi Debbie, 

I just want to start by saying thankyou very very much for my quilt and laundry bag. I was so excited when I opened my package to find them inside. And you were able to put in everything that I asked for so I really do appreciate all your hard work and effort. The purple and yellow are the HMAS TOOWOOMBA colours and the purple pony is our mascot. 

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Dear Pauline and Elaine

Thank you so very much for your wonderful gifts. I love the laundry Bag with the Australian flag and the multi coloured checkered design with my initials BC on it!! 

I really am touched by your kindness and thoughtfulness and know that many many Defence Force members who have also received your gifts are also touched and very grateful. 

Apart from the special and unique laundry bag that I will always have, I'd like to say the act of both your generosity and those that support you have the effect of really lifting morale among ADF members here in the Middle East; mine included.

The lollies are also very much appreciated by my mates and myself! ...and you picked my favourite types of M&Ms :-)

Thanks so much once again!

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Good Afternoon Sir/Ma'am,

I am currently deployed onboard HMAS Toowoomba. A few days ago I received a quilt from Ms. Carol W. During our next Port Visit I will send through a card etc to say thank you properly but in the mean time I just wanted to pass through my thanks via this email. It would be much appreciated if you could please let Carol know that I received her quilt and I absolutely love it!

The quilt has taken pride of place on my bed - I love the purple and blue all through it and there is so much detail! It must have taken a very long time to put together. The day I received the quilt was the first day we had mail in more than a month so it was an excellent surprise! The washing bag is also great and I have been using it since the day it arrived.

I sent a photo of the quilt home to my family who were very impressed - my Mum commented how wonderful it is that there are kind people out there that really do care!

Thank you so much for the quilt and the laundry bag. We have all been arguing over who has the best quilt - funnily enough everyone loves their own one the best! (Although lets face it, how can you beat purple!!)

Kindest regards

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Good Evening Granny Smith,

I am just writing to inform you that I have received the quilt you made for me. I cannot express the joy it brought to the room when it arrived, it is everything and more than what I expected.   I absolutely love it!  It sits on my bed at this current time as I write this letter. I love it!!! 

It was Sunday afternoon I received it, along with my whole section I was sitting at my desk letting all my guys know what was going on for the next day. The posty walked in and handed me the package!!  I immediately knew it was from you and did not hesitate to let the whole office know that I had received it. As we truckies work closely to the RAEME (mechanics) I was sure to let them know, as the friendly rivalry is strong. We are always bragging which of us is the better corps; of course we truckies are definitely the superior corps. =] 

So as I was saying, I was sure to have all their attention when I opened the package. I immediately pulled it out and showed it off. I was told the look on my face was priceless. The RAEME guys were still trying to prove how they thought they where in the better corps. I still beg to differ.

So I am writing this letter late at night whilst sitting on the quilt, as the free time at work is very minimal coming up the end of my deployment. Our replacements are here now and most of my time is dedicated to handing over to them. I am really excited, now with less than a fortnight until I get home. My partner is super excited. 

What you and the rest of the ladies at Aussie Hero Quilts do is heart warming. The moral boost of the troops when receiving a gift like this is second to none. I cannot begin to explain how it makes the soldiers feel. I have seen first hand with my own eyes the opening of quite a few packages with quilts and the emotional change is one that is not seen often during a deployment. It is only explained as pure joy.

There are not enough people like yourself and the rest of the ladies at AHQ on this earth. I really want you to know that it does not go unnoticed.

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Dear Irene,

Thank you very much for the beautiful quilt and laundry bag you took so much time

and effort to create.

There is no better feeling than knowing that someone who has no reason to care is not

only thinking of you while you are away, but also actively working to provide you

with a morale raising gift.

Without a doubt your quilt will be my most cherished memory of my deployment. I'd

like you to know that your quilt and letter to me will become part of my military

memorabilia that will be passed on to my daughters, along with the story of the

woman who took the time to make a gift for a soldier she didn't know.

The colours and pictures on the quilt are definitely worth the wait, you have done a

superb job creating a quilt for the aspiring nutrition nut.

Stay safe and healthy and keep up the great work you are doing with those quilts.

They mean more than you know.

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

Jan-Maree  xx