Grati-Tuesday 14 October

G'day all. Hope you enjoy these messages.  They certainly make me smile every time I read them.  

Don't forget the next sewing day at Penrith is this coming Sunday.  If you are coming, even if you are a regular please let me know.

There will also be a sewing day at my home in the Hills District of Sydney next week.  If you are interested in coming please let me know. We always welcome new faces.

Now enjoy the messages.  :-)

.....

Hi Evelyn,

I just received my quilt in the mail today, having seen many of them on the Facebook page, and photos of other people receiving them, does not compare to the emotion felt in receiving your own quilt – which I experienced today. It was taken straight back to my room and now lays proudly on my bed. On my return home it will then be used by my children or myself and will always hold great sentimental value, both of the time and effort you personally put into the making and also of my own time spent in Afghanistan.

Never underestimate the joy and range of emotions your quilts bring to everyone over here and the sentimental value it will forever hold for us.  I recently had a hardened soldier who was on his 5^th tour of Afghanistan come running into show me his laundry bag saying it was the single best thing he has ever received in the mail  – recognition of what often becomes ‘just doing our job’ really pulls at the heart strings and reminds everyone that our efforts are appreciated, as are yours.

Once again I really appreciate what you are doing not only for the Defence Force but for the wider Community as you explained in your letter –  you should change your quilting motto to “made by Heroes for Heroes”.

Regards,

......

Hi Girls, Just wanted to say thank you from my hubby for the beautiful quilt he received while serving at UNMISS South Sudan for 12 mths. He was very proud to show it off when he got home. I've attached a photo of our girls with their Father's quilt. Love your work, my mother quilts so I know how much work goes into them. 

Hello Donna Jay and Jan- Maree

        I was thrilled to receive my hand crafted Hero quilt and laundry bag.  It was way more than what I expected and I think Donna Jay and her family did a triffic job. I love the fact that your husband and son helped as well.  I have enclosed a couple of pictures from a secret location. I hope that you can tell by the expression on my face how delighted I am...  It really makes a difference to me to know that someone back in Australia cares enough to do something like this. I can see that they were made with love.

Thank you 

Wish I could get a clear pic of that aircraft on the screen behind them - wouldn't it look great on a quilt!
.....

For Louise and the Dolphin Quilters 

Yes I have received my quilt and it is fantastic.
You have done a marvelous job with the little description I gave and I am very appreciative of this gift.   It is the perfect thickness as a quilt for up here in the Middle East as it is very warm on the ship.
I will get plenty of use out of it while deployed and for many years to come.
Thankyou for brightening up my living space whilst I'm on deployment.
.....

Dear Julie,

Thanks very much for the laundry bag, lollies and letter. All of us here really appreciate mail when it comes in.  We can't thank you enough for the work you do for the ADF.  

.....

Louise,

Thank-you so much for the quilt that arrived today in the mail. It looks fantastic and my daughters will love using it, especially on those cold nights in Canberra where we live.
The work that you and the other quilters do for Aussie Hero Quilts is commendable and selfless, and receiving such gifts makes deploying that bit easier.
Thank-you again for the quilt and the kind words in your letter.

Kind Regards,

.....

Hello Anna,
I just received the quilt and my washing bag you made me. It is just fantastic. It's so beautiful and it made my day here in Afghanistan.
Soon it will be Christmas (my first white Christmas and time in the snow!) and then not long before we all come home.

I really wanted to say thank you so much  and please know that it means a lot. You make such a difference.

Thank you for what you do for us.
.....

Dear Tamsin,

I would like to say thank you for the generosity that you have given, I'm deeply moved that a total stranger would be so kind as to donate such beautiful work to me. I'm just one of the many who are here now or have gone before me. Doing my own small part for our country to help make a better world for all of our children to grow up in.

I received my quilt yesterday and it instantly became one of those precious objects we all have to remind us of home and why we are here. It keeps it all in perspective. You will need to give Phoenix and Indiana a hug for me for their contribution, the quilt will be treasured always. When I return to Australia, I will be giving this to my newborn son. Attached is a photo of it on my bed now.

Kind Regards

......

Kerri,

Thank-you so much for the laundry bag and chocolates that arrived today in the mail.

It looks fantastic and it is already hanging up in my cabin and ready to be used. I have also started on the chocolates, as like you said, they are my comfort food and my sweet tooth is definitely enjoying them!!
The work that you and the other quilters do for Aussie Hero Quilts is commendable and selfless, and receiving such gifts makes deploying that bit easier.

Thank-you again for the laundry bag, chocolates and the kind words in your letter.

Kind Regards,

.....

Hey Su,

WOW !! thank you for my quilt you made. You have done an outstanding job!
The quality of it is amazing. People who make these do not get enough credit for the work they do.   The laundry bag will come in very handy as well.
It is hard leaving our families behind and serve overseas however I still think its harder on our families back home who can't help but wonder what we do over here.

I cant thank you enough for the quilt.
.....
A thank you for a quilt by Lynn and a laundry bag by Bev.

G'day,

Just emailing to say a big thank you for the awesome quilt and laundry bag that I received a few days ago.

I am nearing the end of my deployment, so I didn't think I would have time to put an order in. But, luckily for me, my Sergeant explained the situation via email and put an order in for me,

I love the retro, Darwin-based tea-towel used for the laundry bag.   Very creative. And the quilt came at a perfect time, as it is just starting to get a bit nippy over here. It's not quite cold enough for a heavy blanket, so the quilt over the top made for just the right amount of extra warmth.

So, once again, many thanks for this wonderful gift at such short notice.

.....

Hi Ma'am,

I'm writing to say thankyou for the heros quilt care package which I recieved yesterday.

I opened the package in the office so all the boys saw and admired your creative handiwork (and were quietly a little wistful that they haven't recieved one yet). I have already shared the bag of lollies with them which was some consolation!

I will send a photo tomorrow of the one I recieved - from your letter I gather that you have made many! Mine has bright colours on the front on a cream background, brown binding and a green back, all the material has the same floral shadowing as a constant theme throughout and it certainly brightens up my otherwise plain little room, it makes me happy just looking at it :-)

Thanks again, and please also pass on my wider thanks to the Hero's group you are part of, I don't especially feel like a hero, I'm just doing my job, but it is easier to do knowing that people at home are supporting us, both figuratively and litterally wrapping us up in love transmitted through quilts.

Sincerely

......

.To Rosemary
                I recently received the package you sent me in the mail and I just wanted to let you know that I really appreciate it. I haven't received much other mail this trip so I was quite surprised to get something and having read through the message you included it was good to know we are being thought of and even appreciated for being here and doing this job.

It is hard being away from family and just being away from familiar surroundings for so long but I have really enjoyed some of the sights of the ports we have visited and its definatly an experiance I will always remember. Getting such a kind gift in the mail and hearing that there are people back home who care that we are over here doing our jobs makes it a bit easier to wait out the rest of the trip to get home.

Basically I just wanted to say thankyou for the laundry bag (I am already using it to store my spare clean clothes as the space in my locker is over-full), I am a firm believer in karma (not so much as a force of nature as a good way to live life) and so I will try pass on the kind deed 2-fold.

Thankyou very much .....

.....

Hi Jan-Maree, 

I recently received thw Aussie quilt that Lynn and Robin made for me. I think it has arrived just in time as the climate here in Afghanistan is changing very quickly. From hot, dusty days, we now have cool evenings and early mornings with a low of 9 degrees expected this weekend. The weather does not change this fast in Australia. 

I am a surgeon on my first deployment to Afghanistan and really enjoying the experience of working here in the Role 3 at KAF. 

The quilt is really great and a very special gift including Australian colours and the theme of flowers, gardens and sport. I am really pleased with it and will treasure it. It serves a real purpose and believe it or not, it adds some real colour to my life here and my room. I really envy the skill that people have in so many different areas and as a surgeon, I can really complement Lynn and Robin on the stitching. Apart from memories, there is not a lot that one takes home from a deployment. The odd photo also maybe.

I am looking forward to my return home and a summer in Northern NSW where I live.  Certainly I expect to be home for Christmas.

Could you please pass on my thanks to all involved and also to the many others who contribute to the efforts of our Military. I am sure that being away is not always easy and there are friendships and family that suffer, but a gift like this from an unknown friend or supporter really does mean a lot to those of us over here, living a groundhog day existence every day.

Thank you again.

Regards 

.....

Dear Lilis,

I have just received your parcel containing the laundry bag you made for me and all those wonderful goodies. Thankyou so much. The laundry bag is amazing. I think you are very good at sewing. I certainly can't make anything like that and it's awesome that you're a fellow dobie lover.

My other half and I don't have any pets at the moment. Unfortunately we had to leave our animals with family as we are both in the military and both deployed, albeit to different places. So my Mum has the animals. I'm pretty sure they're hers now.

I hope, when you find the time, that you make some more of your wonderful laundry bags. I know that everyone who receives a laundry bag or quilt loves them. They really do make people so happy, because we all know that people at home are thinking about us.

Thankyou again for the parcel and all the time and effort you had to put in. It's such a great laundry bag and I'm so proud to receive it.

Yours faithfully,
.....

Hello Steph,
I am emailing to thank you for the amazing quilt and laundry bag you sent me.
I have been in the Navy for 12 years now and this is my 4th deployment to the Middle East. It is awesome to know that what we do up here, and the time we are away from our family and friends, is appreciated back home.
I know from my own personal stand point, and the opinions of my friends and colleagues onboard, that you and everyone else who takes time out to sew these quilts for us is much appreciated. I have laid mine out on my rack so everyone can check it out.
Thanks again for your work and I hope everyone else who is lucky enough to receive one from you is as appreciative as I am.

Cheers,
.....

Hi Anna,
                  I received my quilt today safe and sound thank you very much, and I must say that it is absolutely gorgeous. You did an outstanding job with the colours and the birds on it - it reminds me so much of home with all the nature colours and the birds, which I love feeding near my house back home in Brisbane. I'm a bit of a nature child and the fauna and flora is a bit sparse where I am (lots of sand though, with the odd sparrow and dove), so I am missing the colours that I am normally used to seeing. It definitely adds colour to the room I am staying in at the moment and brought a big smile to my face when I put it on my bed. There is an incredible amount of work in it and I really appreciate the effort that went into making it. It will start getting colder here soon, so it will be very practical in the near future. I'm going to be over here for a while, so I will get a lot of use out of the quilt and I will enjoy getting to see it often when I get back to my room.

Once again, thank you very much for the quilt and be assured that it will receive much love and valued use.

Warmest regards
.....

Dear Joan & Robin, I wanted to write and say thank you for all you efforts making laundry bags. I know they are very much appreciated by all who receive them. Mine has really brightened up my cabin and I will treasure it always.

Best Wishes

.....

G'day Jan-Maree,
 
I can confirm that I received my Aussie Hero Quilt in the post yesterday. I was absolutely stunned by the quality and design of the quilt. It will be a treasured item for me for the remainder of my lifetime. My plan is to have it photographed in front of our Headquarters building in a few days once things have quietened down here a bit. I will send that photo to you when taken.
 
My eternal thanks to you and your team for making this for me, the support we get from home is amazing and makes all the difference when you are out here.
 
All the very best,

.....  

Dear Mary P

Thank you so very much for you lovely quilt you have made for me. It was received with great pride knowing people like you and your family are back home supporting Australian forces serving overseas.

The quilt you have made for me was a Minecraft one; this is for my daughter, yes an Irish name. My mother is one of those O'Reilly's of Longford so family tradition has been handed down to my two daughters.

My youngest daughter is 10 years old and misses me a lot, I asked for a quilt with the Minecraft theme as this is her favourite game/pastime. I will send this to her which will brighten up her days until I can return.

Her sister is going okay being 15 as she is used to me being away.

I will be sure to take a photo of your work along with your letter and forward this on  to my mother; both she and my Aunt will take great joy from your work as this is the kind of craft work my late grandmother would do. Also knowing you are from her old country will be very exciting news.

I wish you and your family all the best. Again a very big heart felt thank you from me, it is people like you who are the real heroes in our community: People who will take the time to acknowledge our service and let us know. Without support from back home our work overseas is made just that bit harder.

Bless You

.....

I would like to thank you guys for all the good work you do and a  huge thank you to Avril for the quilt I love it

.....

Hey Pam

I just want to say thank you for the laundry bag it was a very nice gesture and Iv'e been using it heaps over here.

We all are very grateful for the care packages that we get over hear it really impoves morale and brightens up people's days. I'm currently in AMAB and Iv'e been here for about 3 months now so I still have another 4 to go it has it's good days and bad but its very fulfilling. Anyway once again thanks for the laundry bag, its come in ver handy.

Kind Regards

.....

And lastly a few photos that have appeared on the Facebook page.

This quilt by Cath.

 One by Noeleen

And one by Lynn with a little applique by me.
Till next time................keep spreading the word and happy stitching!
Jan-Maree xx