Grati-Tuesday 22 September

I may have been doing this for nearly four years but I still love reading these thank you messages.   Hope you do too.

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Hi Sue N

How are you?

Today was a great day as I received your special quilt, thanks so much

You have done a fantastic job I can't wait to give it to my son.

I was blown away with the amount of research and effort you put into making this for my son and I.

The idea of incorporating the RAE through time was a great one.

I have it on my bed and every time I look at it, it brings a smile to my face!

We are very lucky to have an organisation such as Aussie Hero Quilts supporting us, the people involved such as you who make up such a great team and are committed to delivering such great quilts.

 I have been in Afghanistan since April, I was lucky enough to be over here for the 100 year centenary.

Thanks again for all your hard work, it is greatly appreciated by everyone who is away and brings a big smile to all of us!

Thanks also for the nice card, pen, postcard and chocolate.

I will send the Aussie Hero Quilts Facebook page a few pics of myself and my electrician mate holding the quilt below the our workshop.

Have a great rest of the keep up the awesome quilting!

Cheers

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Sue G

Thank you so much for your generosity in designing and making my laundry bag, I really appreciate it. It means so much to know we have the support of people such as yourself supporting us back at home.  The bag will come in very handy over the coming months.  Once again thank you

Regards

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Jackie

Thank you so much for your generosity in designing and making my quilt, I really appreciate it and it is perfect. It means so much to know we have the support of people such as yourself supporting us back at home.  Once again thank you

Regards

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Dear Wendy H

I am one of the fortunate in HMAS Newcastle to have received such an amazing gift from you.  I have been deployed several times over the years, Newcastle's deployment to the Middle East is my first time in the region. Only 3 months ago I got married to my beautiful wife, who so far I have spent only two months with since getting married. Thankfully she understands (although may not always like) the Navy life.

When I received your first parcel I eagerly opened it to find the Laundry bag. I suppose it was almost fate that I received it that day, as my own laundry bag had only two days earlier met with an unfortunate accident. I was so taken back by your generosity that I had to show it off to the others in the Wardroom. Due to this excitement it wasn't until a while later that I noticed the card in the box with the lollies (once again thank you for them; they were greatly enjoyed during one of my Midnight to 7am watches in the Operations Room)

I had not minded in the slightest that I had received the bag vice the quilt but was extremely chuffed when I read that you would be sending a quilt also. We don't usually get mail when at sea and have to wait until after our patrols (several weeks) to receive it. So, as you can imagine there is a great deal of excitement when we received mail. While we do have E-mail access and 'numerous other means of communicating with loved ones back home these days, there still is something special about receiving anything by the regular post (Snail

Mail as we call it).

I could not have received your quilt at a better time either, we had just completed our longest patrol of the deployment, at which time most people were exhausted, with some very short fuses around. I was one of several people who received a quilt that day and the changes that I saw in everyone's mood were instant. I don't think I can do it justice in saying how much all the hard work that you and the others do has meant to everyone on board.

The Laundry bag has already been put to good use and the quilt is something that I will treasure for many years to come. I cannot fully express my gratitude in words. 

Once again, thank you for your generosity to me and others that you have / will support in the future. I know making the quilt would be no small task but please know that the impact that receiving such a thoughtful gift has is truly profound.

Kind Regards

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Lynn,

Thank you so much for the quilt and laundry bag. They are incredible! Our rooms are so drab with white on white linen so this has brightened my room immensely. Your efforts are appreciated here among us deployed, this beautiful act of kindness really touches us all. Thank you for your time and effort. 
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Good afternoon Margaret,

Thank you very much for the lovely quilt you have made. You obviously spent a lot of time on and it shows in the details. It is keeping me warm at night. Sorry it has taken me some time to write this email. We have been working very long hours and in pretty average conditions, over 45 most days with humidity up around 60-70%, so most of my spare time was devoted to talking to family and getting some rest where I could.

It is very humbling to know there are people out there, other than our families, who care about and believe in what we do. Thank you again Margaret for your gift, it is very much appreciated and will be looked after and treasured. I'm sure I will have to battle my son for it when I get home.

Kind regards

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Dear Hilary,

First and foremost, I must say thank you for the quilt and support that you have provided.  Although we do not do this job for the accolades and recognition, it is reassuring to know that there are those at home outside the immediate circle of family and friends whose thoughts and support are with us.

The quilt you provided is spot on, and the laundry bag........ well lets just say it is loud, it does stand out and the boys remind me every time I'm on my way to or from the laundry!!!! Hahaha!!!Gotta love being in a grunt platoon!

The family at home are doing well, and I will make it home for the birth of my fourth child. I've missed the birth of 2 of my children due to overseas operations, so this will be a pleasant return home.

I have to run now, but thank you once again and I hope to meet you and Karl in person one day in the near future!!
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Dear Jean, 

Thank you very kindly for my great laundry bag! It has made my room look much more appealing & I no longer have an excuse to have all my dirty gym gear on the floor ;)

The Geckos fit well here in this hot climate as well as Australia, I even see some scurrying around.

The past 2 weeks I have been doing back to back 12 hour shifts in this hellish heat so the day I came back to my room and found your package at my door just made my day!

Thanks again for all your efforts!

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Good evening Skye,
I am writing to thank you and express my deep gratitude for the beautiful and amazing quilt and laundry bag that I received whilst on the deployment.

The quilt and laundry bag that you have spent so much time and care creating is remarkable, and perfectly depicts everything that I love. It has brought much joy to myself, and many others on board the ship.
You did an amazing job, and I couldn't be happier with the results. I can understand why your daughter would want the quilt, a number of the girls in the mess were jealous too.

I hope you have been able to view a few photos from the 'Chinese Laundry' that was made on Newcastle. Otherwise, I have attached a photo from the deployment, of myself and the quilt.
We are currently on our way back to Australia, heading home to our families.

It is an honour to serve our nation, and you made this trip that much more bearable. Once again, thank you for your effort, it is very much appreciated.
I am proud to serve our country and profoundly grateful for your support.

Yours sincerely, 

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Hi Joan and Robin,

Thanks so much for the laundry bag.
I really appreciate what you do for deployed members; it does mean a lot, even if it seems something small.
I'm sure you would understand given that your son was deployed.

I'm sorry for taking so long to get back to you. I put the blue letter with your email address somewhere REALLY safe after I opened it, and it took almost a month to find it again.
I was glad I did though, as I had wanted to say thank you for what you did and didn't want you thinking that I was some ungrateful creature.

A bit about me;  I'm an Information Systems Tech, which means I look after the computer servers and laptops in the area, making sure that everything runs the way it should in a dusty IT environment. 
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Good evening Mellissa,
Words can not describe how grateful I am to have received such wonderful gifts in the form of a quilt  and laundry bag. You are certainly very skillful and rest assured you have hit the nail on the head regarding Sydney Roosters.   THEY LOOK AMAZING. I will be taking a photo tomorrow of myself and my gifts. Receiving these from yourself  makes what I do a hell of a lot easier. Knowing we have citizens like yourself who take the time and provide such a service to myself and other mates within the forces is truly inspirational.    This is my third deployment to the Middle East however the first time I have been lucky enough to receive amazing gifts. 
Once again thanking you very much xxoo

Regards,
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Hello Rita M.

Thank you for the beautiful quilt! While I had several images in mind of what the finished product might look like, the actual quilt is better than them all!! You have nailed it perfectly.

My wife and mother-in-law do a bit of quilting, so I understand how much time and effort goes in to making one. But when I saw the amount of embroidery on mine, I was humbled and overwhelmed by the lengths you went to for a stranger. And the photos just topped it all off (Ford's, no less - where my Dad used to work).

Once again, thank you for your care and support, expressed through something you love. The time and care taken demonstrates more than any words your thanks for what we do away from home. I hope that I am worthy.

Kind regards,

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Dear Carmel,

I would like to extend my deepest thanks for the effort you have gone in preparing and sending me a care package during my deployment.

I can definitely say it was an unexpected surprise to receive your parcel and an even bigger surprise in opening it. The craftsmanship and effort you have put into my the laundry bag is amazing and I especially enjoy the addition of zombies.

The lollies and sugary treats you included in my care package have been enjoyed by myself and the team I work with. As you mentioned in your letter, it is the simple things that we miss the most when away from friends and family.

I have attached a photo of myself with my very unique laundry bag.

Best wishes,

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Dear Jan-Maree,

Thank you so very much for my laundry bag (made by Sue G). It's so lovely to receive anything when so far from home, and the bag is just delightful - I use it all the time now!
I'm looking forward to my quilt arriving. The ones I've seen so far are gorgeous.

I'm the doctor onboard so I have a vested interest in the crew's well-being and morale, and things like this certainly go a very long way. Thank you so very much to you and your team for what you are doing for us, it is appreciated far more than you realize.

Take care,
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Jan-Maree,

I am writing to in response to your earlier email regarding my quilt,
happy to announce that i have recieved it and am currentlty using it as we speak. I would like to give a massive thankyou to the quilter
for their fantastic job on my hawthorn hawks quilt, it couldn't be anymore awesome !!!, 

You guys provide a great service to us defence members
and I do hope they show the same gratitude towards your wonderful company  who do an amazing job.

kind regards
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Dear Jan-Maree,

I have just had a short break at home and on return I was very pleasantly surprised by the package on my desk as I knew it would be the quilt. On opening it I was very impressed with the quilt, not only did it include my league team but also my wife's - so it will be very usable when I get home! 

The patterns and colours of the quilt are great and it is lovely. Please pass on my thanks and appreciation to Louise (Central Coast) and Tess (Victoria) who your letter identifies as the makers of the quilt. This will be a quilt that will be given pride of place on our lounge room furniture during each footy season for many years to come.

Thank you also to you Jan-Maree for the great work that you do supporting us. We very much appreciate your efforts and the efforts of the many quilters that also devote so much of their time and skills to support us.

Cheers,
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Hi Joan and Robin,
   Today I received the Melbourne laundry bag that you made for me. I actually live down towards HMAS Cerberus (South of Melbourne) when I'm not on the ship, so it's nice to have a reminder of the beautiful parts of the world while we're working in some of the worst areas. I especially liked that you had taken the time to embroider my initials. It was also brilliant timing, as my old plain bag was on it's way out. 
   
   Thank you very much for all of your effort, as it is appreciated. It will definitely brighten my mess and I'm sure it will do me for the remainder of my time in the Navy.
  Thanks and regards,
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Pennie,

I am writing this email with my gratitude to thank you for the exceptional laundry bag you have created for me. It is perfect and definitely adds a bit of colour to my living area. Also thank you very much for the enclosed treats that you sent me, they were a welcome comfort from back home. I think that is excellent that your family has such a strong tradition in the defence force, my family also has a strong tradition and history which is the reason I joined the navy in 2005. I would also like to thank you for your service being an emergency nurse. To me, being a nurse is one of the most difficult jobs in the world. My fiancee is a nurse in the ICU. I feel extremely comfortable knowing that there are amazing nurses in the world to assist people in their poor health. Again, thank you Pennie for your support and the amazing gifts you have sent me on out of the kindness of your heart. The laundry bag was absolutely perfect and your talent in sewing is nothing but professional to say the least.
I hope all is well for you and wish you best for the future. Thank you again.
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Hello Jan-Maree,

I got my laundry bag!!!!! Plus some extra gifts :) It is absolutely amazing and I cannot believe the level of detail that Rita C went to. She sent a lovely letter that explained each part of the bag and I'm deeply touched and humbled by the level of work and consideration that went into it. The little extra treats were also greatly appreciated!! Thanks you and all your team of dedicated and busy workers for the fantastic support you show to us that are deployed. It truly does mean allot to us when we are far from home, family and friends. You are all absolutely amazing!!!!
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Hi Julie-Ann and AHQ

Just wanted to send a quick email to say thank you very much for the lovely laundry bag that I received. Thank you for taking time out of your day to make something special for me. I was very excited to get the unexpected surprise in the mail; an excellent morale boost.

It is quite hot here at the moment, though we have had a number of unexpected hail storms over the few months I have been here so far. It is set to get very cold around Oct though, and I will be having a white Christmas here, which will be a novelty. 

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Dear Betty,
thank you so much for the package. I love the blanket and the laundry bag. I use them both regularly now. This is my third trip serving and I really appreciate the care packages and so do my men.
Thanks again for the  time you put in. I plan on giving the quilt to my daughter when I get back she is growing so fast and will need a bed soon instead of the cot.

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Dear Rita M,

First, thank you SO much for all your hard work and effort to tailor a quilt and laundry bag for me; they are simply fabulous and took my breath away! And, they arrived on Thursday 28 May, the day before my Birthday ... how good was that?! Second, I apologise for the lengthy delay in responding to you. I returned to Australia for two weeks with my family in June and then took the reigns as  for most of July and August - I've barely had time to catch a breath!

I believe the whole AHQ&LB concept is wonderful and I'm sure you know that it's the personal things that make people feel so appreciated. I am very proud to have served in the Australian Defence Force for the past 27 years and grateful to be able to work among such a talented, thoughtful and committed team of people. We're not alone, but sometimes our efforts and family sacrifices go unsung. Thankfully, groups like AHQ&LB and the care packages sent by schools and families make a big difference to us all.   

I hope you enjoyed the trip to the War Memorial Rita ... it's actually one of my son's favourite places (where he can look at real WWll aeroplanes like the P-51 Mustang). I too played a small part in the rounds of the Centenary quilt ~ which was such a good idea. Once again, thank you so much for the quilt and laundry bag, which are both useful and a great reminder of my service in the Middle East.

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

Jan-Maree