You know that feeling you have at the back of your mind that you are supposed to have done something but you are not quite sure what it is???? Well today has been a really busy day with the request list and lots of other things happening. There has been something bothering me all day -what am I forgetting!!! I just realised that I had not edited the blog for tonight! Thank goodness tonight is the Gratitude Post and you guys have written most of it for me!
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Pennie,
I thought that I would send a short note, on the arrival of the wonderful quilt
that you sent recently.
The quilt makes a dramatic improvement to my simple bed space, so thank you for
making my world that little bit more like home. I have shown the quilt to
several of my counterparts, who were similarly impressed. They wait with eager
anticipation for theirs to arrive.
I feel for your arduous conditions (Pennie was quilting it in 40+C temperatures to get it done on time). The quilt is certainly very warm, given our
below zero temperatures, thank you. I could only imagine the labour in creating
it in an Australian Summer. You can rest knowing that your 'sweat shop' has
delivered a product that will be cherished for a long time, well beyond this
deployment. Understanding the effort in creating the quilt, from observing my
mother's efforts years ago, the detail is really fantastic.
So in closing, I wish to thank you again for the quilt, it is an exceptional
piece of craftsmanship that will remain an heirloom within my family.
I am grateful for your dedication to support Australian soldiers, and your
personal note. It strengthens my persistence during difficult days when I
return to my bed space and have a little reminder of home.
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Karin,
I would
like to thank you and the members of your working bee for the quilt that I received
today. The generosity of your group has truly impressed me and to receive a
gift such as the quilt is very humbling in deed.
As a
commander, I am always amazed at the generosity of others and especially those
who support us from home. There are many people back home that do not even
realise that we are still here in Afghanistan so to know that people like you
and your group are still supporting us through your gifts and through
sacrificing your own time, it is truly heartwarming.
On behalf
of all of our serving members, please keep up the good work and know that even
if you do not receive a response from those that you send gifts to, believe me
when I say that they are always appreciated and cherished.
Warmest
regards to you and the Port Lincoln Quilters Guild
.......
Hi Jan-Maree,
Thanks for the quilt and laundry bag, they are just
gorgeous and I love them! The laundry bag is so beautiful that I almost don't
want to use it and it is currently hanging on my wall as a piece of art work.
They arrived much earlier than now and I was hoping to
write a thank you letter. The rate I am going it will never happen so this
email is to say thanks and it arrived. I will still try and write a letter to
the lovely ladies who made them.
Hope your January is going well!
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Dear Irene,
I recently received my quilt. And what a quilt!
You have outdone yourself with the
personalisation. I was overjoyed to get something that really was related to my
job and I'm pretty sure the guys in my office were all jealous. It is now laying on my bed and when I return to
Australia, it will be sitting on my couch for those cold nights in Canberra.
It'll also provide a nice talking point for when people come round!
If there is anyway I can thank you or help out
please let me know. You have improved my morale no end, just receiving post is
a big plus.
Thank you for both the quilt and laundry bag.
They will make my tour very memorable.
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Good Afternoon
Jan-Maree,
I am writing to thank yourself, Lynn from
Engadine and Kym from Bundaberg from the bottom of my heart for the lovely
quilt that I received yesterday.
To be quite honest I was a bit taken back to
receive one being that I hadn't submitted an order for one, regardless it was a
very pleasant surprise.
The deployment for me is coming to a close with
only 3 weeks left in Kandahar and 4 weeks until I'm back on Australian soil,
and it can't come quick enough.
I'd like to thank you from all of the soldiers
situated on Camp Baker, Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan for all of your selfless
hard work that goes into both the quilts and laundry bags.
It is always a warming feeling to look upon
another servicemen's face when they receive these gifts.
Once again thank you very much for the quilt, it
is a welcome addition considering the temperature here has dropped
dramatically.
Have a great year Jan-Maree.
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G’day
Karin,
I am
writing to thank you and your Quilter’s Guild for your magnificent gift.
It is
extremely well made quilt with a wonderful pattern and colours. If it keeps me
as warm at night half as much as it has warmed my heart to receive it them I
will be warm indeed. We are currently going through a cold snap here at Kabul
at present with the overnight temperatures dipping to as low as
-16C so your gift is going into action straight away.
In another
way, receiving it and knowing that you and your hard working quilter’s put it
together for me, has done more for my morale than you can ever imagine.
Please pass
on my eternal thanks and gratitude for this wonderful and heartwarming gift.
Rest assured it will be returning to Australia with me and will be displayed
with great pride.
Kind
regards,
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Dear Robyn,
I have just received your laundry bag with the fantastic Australian theme!
Thank you for very generous gift, it is greatly appreciated.
The work you undertake on behalf of the troops here within the Middle East is
exceptionally well received and also provides each person with a memory of
their deployment when they return home. It is interesting to read your father
was in the services. It seems that once a family has been touched by one of
their own undertaking service that it is something future family members
remember proudly. Your efforts make a difference to the people within the
Middle East and the breadth of your work is evident each time I enter the
laundry and see the huge amount of bags which you and yours produce!
One again thank you very much and I hope 2015 provides you with all you require
and then some.
Best wishes,
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Good morning Robyn,
Firstly let me introduce myself. I'm a member of the RAAF currently deployed to the UAE supporting ADF operations in the Middle East region.
Today, I received a parcel from you, thinking that it was from my wife, that is, until I read on the box Aussie Hero Quilt. When I read this I became like a child at Christmas, full of excitement and wanting to open it right away which I did and was amazed at what was inside. Your quilt looks absolutely stunning and I can't overstate the amount of work you have put into this. I can't thank you enough for this quilt and will look after it for many years. It's great to know that we have so much support back home and everything we get from home no matter what it is, even from people we don't know or have not met, means so much.
Please find attached a photo of your quilt which I will be using to keep warm during the cold nights here (I just wish I knew how cold it actually gets here before I left. I would have brought more winter clothes with me).
Thank you again and thank you to all the sewing heroes back home.
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Dear Evelyn,
I sincerely apologise for not
sending you this email sooner to thank you for the lovely laundry bag
that you presented to me during the Aussie Heroes Quilt visit to RAAF Base
Richmond in September last year. Unfortunately I was on leave overseas when the
visit took place and during my leave the laundry bag was put in a 'safe place'
until my return. Well, that 'safe place' was eventually found and I opened it
upon my return from the Christmas break. I am delighted with it, particularly
the aircraft on the pattern and also my initials. I will definitely take the one you made
for me overseas when I deploy next.
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Dear Tamsin and Jan,
I have just received your quilt with the fantastic Australian theme! Thank you
for very generous gift, it is greatly appreciated.
The work you both undertake on behalf of the troops here within the Middle East
is exceptionally well received and also provides each person with a memory of
their deployment when they return home. The quilts are all top quality and are
displayed in people's rooms. They not only add warmth but also much needed
colour to what are, at times, drab and dreary rooms (although a drab room is
better than no room at all!!) Rest assured that your efforts make a difference
to the service personnel here within the Middle East.
One again thank you very much and I hope 2015 provides you with all you desire
and then some.
Best wishes,
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Good morning Tamsin,
I am the lucky recipient of a beautiful
patchwork quilt made with love from your workshop team.
Firstly, I thank you and all those involved with
the Aussie Hero Quilt program for your time and efforts contributing to the
cause. From the pictures you sent along with your letter it appears that a
great deal of enjoyment and satisfaction is had in the process of creating.
When I opened up the package I was overwhelmed
with a sense of pride for being here and to have this experience of such an
exchange. The vibrancy of the colours and the Australian theme within the quilt
did increase the homesick feeling I have been trying to avoid, but the smile
hasn't left my face, waking up to the quilt's coziness every morning since it's
arrival. I am posted at Darwin base prior to heading over here and the winter weather is a large temperature drop first thing in the morning.
I have been here for one month of my six month
tour, but have started slipping into a very methodical routine. So much
so, a member of the catering staff doesn't even ask me for my breakfast order
anymore, he just serves it up knowing exactly what I want. There isn't a
diverse number of activities to occupy your time with outside of core working
hours apart from going to the gym, watching movies or reading. I can tell you
that your additional care package items have been enjoyed at a slow pace over a
cup of tea, a chapter of a book or a chat with friends. The small pleasures in
life keep us all going.
I hope that you enjoyed a safe Christmas period
with family and friends and fellow quilters.
I trust that your continued involvement with
Aussie Hero Quilts will provide recipients of your patchwork with a mmemento of
significance. Taking my quilt home with me will always be a reminder of the
experience I am having and the contribution I am making.
Thank you once again.
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Fran,
I got the most beautiful package in the mail yesterday.
Thank you so much for putting such time, effort and skill into this lovely
quilt & laundry bag. It really is great that it comes from you, whom I know
and I realise how personalised you've made it.
As you probably know, we have hospital white covers here
and the splash of colour that it adds has transformed my living space.
Thank you, and God bless you for this gift.
For one made by Nancy
Good Afternoon Jan-Maree,
Thank you so much for the beautiful Aussie Hero Quilt. I absolutely love it! I have attached a photo below of myself with my quilt standing on the Flag Deck of HMAS Success while we were in port in Muscat, Oman this week.
The work you are doing is such a wonderful thing and we are truly lucky to have your support.
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Hi Pennie,
Would just like to say a very big thank you to the
time and effort you put in to my quilt and laundry bag, I cant imagine the
hours you put into making them and all the exploring you did to try and get a
photo of a leopard. I absolutely love the print and patterns I am in love with
it! I cannot thank you enough. I finally received it after being out for 7
weeks but it was most definitely worth the wait... Our mail drop got stopped and
lost around the 4 week mark so we missed out on all of our xmas mail... so it
may have been delayed. I enjoyed the photo of your cat Linux on my quilt haha,
she is a big cat!
Over the past 2 months out here I have seen a lot that I never thought I would
get the chance especially at such a young age of 20 years old, I am enjoying my
time out here even though it gets a bit repetitive and boring at times and all
I do some days is think about what I would be doing if I were back in Sydney
but overall im having a ball seeing the different places in the world and
serving my country. My role on my ship is a Chef, so I cook with a team of 7
boys and 1 other girl every day, its a challenging job but it keeps me busy and
makes the days go fast and its enjoyable especially to have such a close team.
In my spare time I play my guitar, read, go to the gym, spend time with mates
and watch lots of movies etc etc.
Anyways, I hope you had a fabulous xmas and nye and
work is treating you well! Thank you once again I appreciate it so much..
Thanks,
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Hi Gale and Jenny,
I have just received my quilt and would like to say a
very big THANK YOU. I love it!
I am currently working as the navigators yeoman
onboard Success. My main role consists of maintaining and updating all the
ships electronic and paper charts. And as you could imagine we have quite a
large number of them, so it keeps me very busy.
I hope you both have had a wonderful Christmas and New
years and that 2015 brings good health and happiness.
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Robyn,
I would just like to thank you so much for my Manly
quilt that I received this week. I only have about a fortnight before I return
home and get back to normal everyday life.
I have just spoken to a few of our replacements about
the work of your marvellous organisation. They are blown away by the different
designs and craftsmen ship of the laundry bags and quilts. I will treasure what
you have created for many years.
You efforts in providing this quilt in such a short
time is appreciated.
Please pass on my regards to Jan Maree for her
efforts.
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Hello Jan-Maree
I have received the Quilt it is AMAZING! It is honestly better than I could of imagined it to be, you girls do
such an amazing job. A couple of the other guys got theirs too and we
are all ecstatic about our quilts.
I have a message from the lady that made it for
me, and I will be sending her a thank you letter as well, it
has made my trip for me, I am also pleased to say that I only just
found out that I am having a baby boy about 1 month after I get home, so
there is no doubt that he will be growing up using the Quilt
as his blanket all around the house and throughout his youth and maybe, if he
is as much of a fan of them as I am, he can pass it on to his child one day.
Again from the bottom of my heart thank you so
much for everybody's hard work at Aussie Hero Quilts. Your time and effort on
these beautiful gifts do not go unnoticed.
Thankyou
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Lovely stuff!
ReplyDeleteSo good to read!!
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