Grati-Tuesday 6 November

In case you are wondering I am still getting to the blog post about the weekend... I got home yesterday afternoon and then had to catch up on emails.  Today I drove up to Newcastle to have lunch with a US Air Force fellow who deployed with the Aussies when he was on an exchange posting. We have kept in touch ever since and this week he just happened to be back in Australia for a wedding. It was so lovely to catch up, especially as I had to come up to Maitland anyway to return the quilt frames that we borrowed for the weekend. I am staying here tonight as I knew I would be just too tired to drive back.  As I sit here typing it is twilight and I am able to look out over fields and gardens and it is just beautiful.  The house is on the top of the hill, it is muggy outside but there is a fan blowing on my and I have a nice cool glass of white wine.. it is nearly dinner time and my hosts have refused any help. I am being spoilt! 

I promise to start writing the post from the weekend tonight. 

I would love it (Very much appreciate it) if those that attended the night would take the time to write a little about the evening too... try to put in to words what you took away from the weekend.)

And now to this week's gratitude messages. 

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Hi Team!  Firstly I want to say thank you for supporting us troops day in day with these beautiful pieces of work.  Margaret B’s work is simply amazing and no dollar amount can be put on the gifts that I recently received.  There is a story behind my quilt which I’ll tell shortly but here is my quilt and bag set up in my room. 👍❗️😊  My son gave me his “Cappy” to travel with while I was away so it will be fitting when I return with Cappy and a blanket for him to snuggle.  I can’t wait to see his face when he sees the bag and quilt.  

PS Thank you for the Aussie treats.  They are missed!

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Good morning Caroline,

I hope this e-mail finds you and your family well. I assume after the recent spate of 'interesting' weather Australia has had that it is starting to warm up (Melbourne warm)!

I apologise taking such a long time to make contact with you, however, I wanted to wait until we had photos taken (you will note there isn't a lot of greenery in are location), which we only achieved the other day.

I wanted to extend a very big thank you for the wonderful work in making my quilt and cape, I don't know how you fit it all in with four kids.

It is always great to receive items from Australia, however, your parcels were a wonderful surprise and have been the talk of the town for some time. It is great to see the laundry bags in use every day - you can easily spot the Australians! Your quilting/sewing skills are first rate and I know these items will last in my family for a very long time.

I wish you and your family all the very best as 2018 comes to a close and hope that you have a wonderful Christmas and New Year.

Kind regards

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Good evening Robyn!

I am a Seaman Communications and Information’s System sailor and it is currently 5:48pm on 26^th of October 2018 when I received your wonderful hand made laundry bag.

I really want to say thank you and the Maitland Patchwork Quilters group for taking time out of your day to lovingly craft this which I truly shall cherish. I also want to say thank you for your handwritten letter with the rich history behind the Sydney Harbour envisioned laundry bag. The photo on your card  captures a really nice picturesque sunset over your farm.

Again, I really want to thank you for your time and effort in providing me this gift and it will always remind me about the people back at home.

I hope you and your family are well and I look forward to hearing from you in the near future!

  

Kind Regards,

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Hi Robyn,

What a wonderful surprise I had when I came up on watch to find that there was a collection of laundry bags for us to choose one from.

Thank you so much for taking the time to make and donate the laundry bag, your gift (as well as the others we received) is very much appreciated. I thought the indigenous art was striking and I liked the charming phrase about Tennis.

I’m currently serving on HMAS Adelaide, a large helicopter carrier and we’re currently on deployment, hopefully returning home before Christmas. My home port is in Sydney, so we’re not too far apart. Your property looks beautiful and hopefully you got a good dose of the rain that recently drenched Sydney. My uncle and aunty also have a cattle property in Queensland and are also finding it tough. Hopefully it breaks soon.

It's not easy being a service person, but little thoughts of kindness and generosity of people like you makes it much more enjoyable.

Best wishes to you, your family and your colleagues at Maitland Patchwork Quilters and thank you once again for your gift.

Kindest regards,

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Good morning Clarissa I thought I'd drop you a quick email to say a very big thank you for my personalised laundry bag. I was really touched to receive it and it has become a much treasured item for me that has just spent two weeks with me on HMAS Adelaide. 

Whilst on Adelaide we had a families day which Jan-Maree Ball also came to0 (amongst others) to deliver over a thousand bags for the upcoming deployment to APEC. As an extra Chaplain on board for the two weeks I had the privilege of delivering some of those bags to very pleased and happy defence members. One group even came to find us to get theirs quicker. 

I have attempted one quilt making in my lifetime and found it quite a challenge so I really appreciate the work you all do. Thanks again for the quilt and your letter and keep up the good work because I have seen first hand that it is making a difference.

Grace and Peace

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Hi Rebehah,

Just received the lovely quilt you made for me.  Thank you very much, your instincts were spot on.  Your timing is also great, as it is starting to get cold over here.  May I say, undertaking to make quilts is such a kind gesture.

I’m also a Queenslander and like you, I’m a professional – a military lawyer.  From your Note, it sounds like you are enjoying your time in WA, as well as being generous with your spare time.

Thank you again for the quilt.  Take care.

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Dear Sue N,

Thank you so very much for the wonderful quilt and laundry bag. They are now my proudest possessions! We here with the Task Group TAJI VII are all so very grateful for the support we receive from the people at home. Knowing that you and many thousands of others contribute in this way makes us even more determined to achieve success on our mission. With less than 2 months of our 6 month deployment left receiving the quilt and laundry bag was a real morale boost.

Again Thank you and best wishes

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Good morning Jo.

I am currently deployed to RMAF Butterworth, Malaysia, as part of the RCB123 – (Rifle Company Butterworth) – rotation, as the Finance Clerk. I have been here since 03 Sep and I am due to return to Australia 30 Nov.

Firstly, I must apologise for taking so long to send a reply, but the work here has been keeping me extremely busy. I am writing to thank you for the beautiful laundry bag that you all made and sent over for us to use – they have certainly come in very handy! I selected the lovely blue, black and white abstract design, which caught my eye over any of the others.  I am quite artistic and dabble in a number of creative pursuits, so this is probably why I selected this one.

I really appreciate all of the wonderful things that are sent over to all of our deployment locations, as I’m sure all other personnel do. It is such a lovely thought and a wonderful feeling to receive something from home, that was made from the heart and is so useful!

Could you please pass on my thanks and kind regards to all of those involved with the project. I wish you all every happiness and I hope karma comes back to you ten-fold…as you all deserve great things for the kindness you’ve shown. I don’t currently have a picture to send through, but I will endeavour to get something to you in the immediate future.

Take care and thank you again!

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Jan-Maree,

Please may I introduce myself, I am the First Lieutenant onboard Adelaide, I would like to thank you and your volunteers for the laundry bags that have been distributed onboard Adelaide. They are a massive morale enabler throughout the crew as we head North to spend a considerable time at sea on our next commitment.

You and your volunteers have put smiles on the faces of many a ships company and now Adelaide is part of that smiling community.

Thanking you again

Very respectively 

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Dear Gail,

I just wanted to say thank you so very much for creating me a laundry bag that speaks to me so personally.

I found three bags that I really liked, but I chose your bag for a couple of reasons:

My partner calls me a Koala because I give good hugs, every time I hear Waltzing Matilda on parade I get overwhelmed with pride at being an Aussie and the the green and gold reminds me of our amazing country

Thank you for sharing your story with me and for imbuing this bag with a lot of love and support, despite not knowing who would be the recipient. I have been in the Navy for almost fourteen years and while I do it because I love it, not because of the praise attached to serving your Nation, I can honestly say that it is the nicest recognition I have received.

I hope you keep getting to do all the things you love and are looking forward to celebrating Christmas, hopefully with your grandchildren.

Sending you my appreciation from the high seas,

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Hi Pennie,

I recently received the most beautiful quilt from you. Thank you so very much. I’m at five-month mark of my trip and your parcel honestly made my week, I sent photos of it to my family back home and they’re rather jealous, ha ha. I particularly love the fact that the fabrics are from Bali – they’re so beautiful!

Thank you again, your hard work has truly brightened my day over here.

PS Unfortunately the pineapples survived just long enough to be devoured by my office,  ha ha. They were delicious

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Good afternoon Sandy,

May I start with a sincere apology for being late with this Thank You email for my quilt. As like my team members quilts, it turned out fantastic and I love the colours. My partner quilts so I might have to hide it from her a little.

We have been here for sometime now and we have not long to go. As usual, we got those little (and some not so little) jobs to complete so our replacements can start off fresh.

I can honestly say this deployment has been the busiest I have been for quite some time. There have been long days with at times little rest & recovery. However, it has been worth it and certainly a worthwhile experience.

The temperature is dropping here and it is nice here outside. A few months ago it was an impossibility as you’d be dripping sweat.

I think it is great you got a group of like-minded friends that can get together to have fun and create fantastic personalised quilts for the guys and girls here.

Sandy, please accept this email as my thanks for the quilt. I recognise there is a lot of work and effort involved. Of course, please pass on my thanks to Jenny and Lynne.

The quilt will be treasured and in the future it will trigger good memories from days gone.

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Dear Robyn,

I am writing to say a massive thank you for my laundry bag. I received it in the mail yesterday.

This was my second deployment and hopefully not my last. It is an honour to be able to do what we do and I really appreciate the time and effort you put in to make me something so beautiful. This laundry bag will get a lot of use, it will be going away with me everywhere.

Thank you so much once again.

Sincerely,

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Hi Lyn,

I was the recipient of your lovely laundry bag. I am a Lieutenant in the Navy and I am the Deputy Maritime Logistics Officer posted to HMAS Adelaide. I am from Sydney and I am lucky enough to be based in my home town at the moment which means I get to see my family on a regular basis.

I am very grateful to receive your laundry bag and your letter. It is great to know a bit about the person behind the bag. Hope that your travels through Queensland and NSW went well. I have spent some time in Darwin with the Navy and have managed to see some more of the top end while up there. That is one thing I have enjoyed about being in the Navy is the amount of the country I have managed to see. I have been to all the mainland states and territories and next year I should be going to Tasmania as well which I am looking forward to.

Thank you very much for the time you spend making quilts and laundry bags especially mine. I will treasure it and put it to good use.

Kind regards,

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Dear Susan, 

What a raise to my day here in the MER.   The Box was hand delivered to me from the Postie.   

Thank you is not enough for the hard work you have put into this quilt and Laundry bag.  It has already taken pride of place on my bed.( As per the photos.) It is wonderful the work you are all doing for us and I know that we all love when they arrive. We will all hold them up to show each other and we always say" I should had said can I get that on mine"  But everyone is special to each of us. 

I love what you have done for me.  I live in Victoria and have kangaroos coming into my yard, so the backing on the Laundry bag just reminds me of home. Also the paper clips remind me of my role in an office.  The effect that you have put into the quilt is amazing and every day I look at it makes me happy to serve my Country and know I have lovely people at home supporting us. 

I could not be happier with the design of the quilt and Laundry bag. I do not want to put my smelly clothes in it.  I love the poppies, the wording and all the little extras you have added.  The work of the dye fabric and you being able to print onto fabric is amazing. 

I will treasure this always and my children will as well.   When I do finish my role here it will take pride of place in my home so everyone can see your wonderful work. 

Thank you again for your support. 

Kind Regards, 

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Hi Ruth, 

A massive "Thank You" for my wonderful Laundry bag. It really is very special and i am very grateful for your time and effort.

Aussie hero quilts make us feel so proud to be over here working to protect our beautiful home. As Australian defence personnel sometimes we don’t feel like the Australian populous understand or appreciate our contributions, but knowing that there are people at home making these beautiful bags and quilts for us, makes us very happy. 

Once again thank you and it will hang high with pride. 

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Good Morning Lynne,

I am currently serving on Australian Warship HMAS Success.

We were recently presented with some new Dhoby (laundry) bags and I chose your awesome design as mine.

I just wanted to send a quick email to say thank you for taking the time to create these bags that brighten up our lockers in our Mess (sleeping quarters). Keep up the good work, we really appreciate it!

Kind Regards,

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Dear Jenny,

On behalf of my team and I, we sincerely appreciate the effort and thoughts that go into sending home made quilts and laundry bags to us while we are deployed.
 This is my fifth deployment, having previously served in East Timor and Afghanistan on a number of occasions. Without fail, each and every time a parcel or gift such as yours arrives from a stranger back home, it fills me with absolute pride that someone other than our families knows we are away.

I am a father to three beautiful kids, 15, 12 and 7 who are waiting at home. They miss me while I am away (I hope) and I absolutely miss them. I feel I am doing something worth while though and contributing to the world being a better place, even if its only a small influence.

I am especially grateful for the time you invested in making the quilt and also your kind words and thoughts (and treats).

Please take care, enjoy your day and know that you talent, effort and thoughts are absolutely appreciated.

Kind Regards,
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Till next time... keep spreading the word and happy stitching.

Jan-Maree xx