Grati-Tuesday Messages 12 June 18

Hi All, 

still in Canberra, heading back to Sydney tomorrow.   The workers are busy chewing up my driveway and I am looking forward to seeing what they are doing.   Apparently there is lots of mud around at the moment.  Oh joy!

Time to enjoy these messages.. much less messy!

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Hello Jean,

I received your amazing laundry bag. I wanted to send you some photos too. So thought I’d email them to you. 

This is my first deployment. It’s fun, but a lot of work. It can be stressful and emotional at times. But your laundry bag definitely made my day! 

Thanks so much for your hard work. 

It means so much. 

Hope you are well. 

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Hi Sue,

Thank you very much for the wonderful quilt covering many of my favourite things. I really like the composition of the tiles. The Snakes and Ladders game was so real!

(especially the hand painted snakes).

I sent a picture of your quilt spread on my cot to my family. They were really bowled over. I will e-mail it to you as well if you are interested.You must love your cats so much that your e-mail address speaks for them!

Yes, living away from family can be difficult, especially for those who are back home.

You are indeed a gifted quilt maker. Keep it up.

Regards

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Dear Sue,

Thank you so much for my blanket, it is amazing. Everything I could have asked for. My partner and I intend on starting a family when we get back home, We are both deployed at the same time in different locations, I would like to use the blanket as a baby blanket eventually.

Thank you for the quizzes as well, definitely enjoyed doing those.

The work that Aussie Heroes do is inspiring, I know it means the world to me receiving my quilt and the laundry bag I received earlier.

Again, Thank you so much.

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Hello Ellen,

Thank you very much for the quilt, you did a fantastic job. Your family’s military history is quite impressive, you must be very proud. My Great grandfather was in the RAAF during WWII, but unfortunately I don’t know much about his career. He worked for some sort of secretive signals unit that conducted different black ops/covert missions I am told.
You sound like you have a nice year planned ahead of you, I too enjoy the outdoors life.
I spent the first part of my military career as an infantryman until I hurt my back and transferred to an office role. I now work in the pay and administration world, but we still get out and do the training to maintain our fitness and weapon skills etcetera, which is important.

I am going home for some leave next month, I am looking forward to spending time with my wife and dog. I have a Mastiff x Great Dane which I bought from a dog rescue company. I think she had a bit of a hard life as it took her some time to trust people again.  She’s a different dog now, she has become one of the happiest dogs I’ve ever seen. You probably can’t tell that I miss her.

Thank you again for the quilt and kind words. I hope you enjoy the rest of the year.
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Hello Jean,

I just wanted to say thankyou for the awesome job you did on the laundry bag you made for me. Please know that i truly appreciate it and that it brings a huge smile to my face everytime i use it. I'm sure i will continue to use it even after i return home.

Thanks for your support

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Dear Georgina,

My names XXXX and I live in XXXX with my wife and four cats! Your letter has found me at the end of my second deployment, and one that I have thoroughly enjoyed.
Although there have been many long hours and stressful moments, I find displays of generosity like yours to be heartfelt and uplifting.

At present I’m allocated to the Royal Australian Engineers, in the position of Architectural Draughtsman.
It is my duty to provide technical advice to my commanders on engineering solutions and to plan, design and deliver infrastructure within the MER, and back home in Australia.

Firstly I would like to thank you for the gift of the Quilt, it truly is a beautiful piece of work! It’s easy to see how much time you have dedicated to it through the intricate detailing and stitching.
I appreciate the fact that you have gone above and beyond to research the content matter that I had requested. By choosing FLW, it’s a testament to your keen eye for design!
Art Deco is also my favourite architectural period, and fortunately there are still many fine examples existing in my town.

I found your story to be compelling and could picture you stitching away late into the afternoon. I can relate to that especially, as I’m also passionate about my profession and often find myself losing track of time, totally immersed in a building design or multimedia product until the early hours.

Since I’ve been back home, I’ve been hesitant to use the quilt in case I dirtied it, and trying to think of how I could use it as a display piece.   But after re-reading your letter I think I’ll take it out tonight and use it through winter…you're right that a few marks is a fair trade for the warmth and cheer!

Thanks again for your efforts! The Aussie Quilts programme has brought a lot of joy to our service men and women, and gives us all a lasting memory to treasure!

Sincerely,

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Greetings Nicole and family,

I wanted to thank you in person for the wonderful quilt and laundry bag I received in the mail today.

I am an avid Essendon Supporter and I can now sleep soundly here in the Middle East with my brand new quilt protecting me from the changeable temperatures coming from my small room air-conditioner. I was so happy when I received the laundry bag because I can now safely complete my laundry routine knowing that I am going to get the correct pile of washing returned to me.
 I'm so impressed and humbled by the amazing support we're receiving whilst we are deployed over here.

You and your amazing colleagues are making a difference over here :-) Everyone is talking about their Quilts and Laundry Bags.......And they proudly display the wonderful quilting masterpieces that your team produces.

OK, it's time to head back to my room and rest for the evening. We're having a great time over here and we're all working hard to serve our country the best we know how. We are enormously grateful for the support we're receiving from our beautiful country and I am looking forward to returning later in the year to spend a wonderful Christmas with my family.

All the best to you and your family (and your extended quilting family too).

Kindest regards,
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Hi Jill,

I am just letting you know that your wonderful quilt has arrived over here in the Middle East. Thank you very much.

It will definitely be used when I get back home to Newcastle in the middle of July! It is currently averaging about 45c here so not much use for a nice quilt!

Life over here is not to bad. It is very hot though and I think it will be a shock going back to a Newcastle winter.

Once again thank you for the lovely quilt (my Mum actually quilts as well and said yours looks really nice!!) and also all the wonderful food and treats that were in the package. I shared them out between my team here and it was greatly appreciated.

It really is wonderful to see the generosity of complete strangers and it is beyond words how this makes you feel, especially when you are on the other side of the world and away from your loved ones.

Cheers
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Good morning Georgina, Thank you, thank you, thank you. Your beautiful creation has surpassed my expectations. The colours and design are so divine, and I love that you embroidered all our names onto it, including Lenny. I had a hazy visual in mind of how I thought I’d like it to look, and you have taken that visual, tweaked it and made it a reality. When I first emailed the request form, I actually felt bad that I’d made such a specific request. All my work mates were requesting fairly basic topics and designs, and I thought my idea might be a bit too needy? I follow Aussie Hero quilts on FB and I have to admit, I saw a photo of my quilt in one of the posts. I knew instantly it was mine and I was beside myself! I can’t believe how quickly the quilt has come to me since I first sent the request. I go home to Melbourne and I think I will die with the extreme weather difference (mid 40’s here currently and getting hotter) , but I’m already daydreaming about curling up on the couch with my boys and my puppy under my beautiful quilt. In so many ways, your gift is a morale booster. Such a beautiful gift you’ve given me, a combination of your time, effort, talent and thoughtfulness. It’s something I will treasure for years to come. I’ll share the Minties with my mates, a sweet bonus. Best wishes to you Georgina,  .....  Hello Anne, Thank you for making this washing bag, very cool design and a lot of work went into it I'm guessing. Beautiful letter, I haven't been in the army a long time only 9 years. In those 9 years i have done 2 Malaysia exercises, this is my 3rd one now, also have been to New Zealand for an exercise, New Caledonia and Afghanistan. Thank you again for this and making so many for other people as well. Kind regards ..... Hi Sandy, I received my Aussie Hero quilt!! It's perfect! A big thank you to yourself, Jenny and Lynne for your kind and beautiful quilt. It has certainly made my day! I hope all is well in sunny Coffs Harbour, I would very much enjoy an Aussie banana right about now! Thanks again ladies for the thoughtful (high quality) quilts you make for us Aussies. There are quite a few jealous Americans here at the hospital! Kindest regards ..... Joy, A brief note to say ‘thank you very much’ for my quilt – it is excellent!  All the team over here look forward to and enjoy getting a laundry bag and/or quilt – they are quite the talking point.  Now I have quite a fancy one to show off to all. I grew up in Wollongong, so it is great to get something from the South Coast of NSW.  Just receiving something special and different from home makes the time away from the family (I have three children) a bit more bearable for a bit longer.  Although not intended and an heirloom, they are an excellent memento of the time we spend away from home that gets use for many years.  I appreciate the Growler and Super Hornets (they are quite good) and seeing someone cycling always brings a smile to my face. Again, thank you for all your time and effort.  I and the rest of the team over here really appreciate the work you and the Aussie Hero Quilts folk do.  It’s great to get something that little bit special which makes up feel really special. Regards, ..... Hi Pennie, Just received the laundry bag you made. Thanks so much for taking the time to make it and send it over here for me to use. It’s coming in very handy as I didn’t bring one with me, so thank you! Hope you’re having a great evening and have a fantastic day tomorrow. Best wishes .... Good evening Susan, I received my quilt several days ago and have just been so blown away with the final product, that I wanted to admire it for a bit longer before I responded to your "excellent" letter. Your work is just so far above my expectations!, I love my quilt and so many people I have shown it to are just so impressed with my ANZAC Quilt....lol..."I could easily sell a dozen!"...so to speak!. Please pass on my gratitude to all that have contributed in any way, even with just the provision of the materials...I love the Kiwi's! Thank you for all the work and meaning that you have put into it! I love it! Thanks again for your best wishes, your prayers and your beautiful quilt ..... Dear Janis, I am sorry for the repeated set of trauma that you have received due to my request for Rick and Morty, Although I am more than pleased with the effort and outcome of my quilt and laundry bag, thankyou for the effort that you put in many of my colleagues are jealous.   A bit about me, I come from NSW originally, out near the blue mountains. I have a lovely partner and beautiful dog that i now live with in my posted location of Townsville.  I enlisted in the Australian Army Signals core 2 years ago and was overwhelmed with the chance to deploy on operations. They call my trade 'Geeks' as the title might tell you i work heavily with computers and apart of a helpdesk, attempting to help the many high ranking officers that might need help. Again thank you for your support and the effort of my items I am extremely impressed and happy with what I have received. .....  That is all for tonight. Cheers from a cold, rainy Canberra.  Till next time... keep spreading the word and happy stitching Jan-Maree xx