Grati-Tuesday 20th August 2024

 

Happy Tuesday Friends!

A great blog this week with lots of messages from around the world and great images so grab a cuppa, sit back and relax while you soak up some well deserved gratitude. 

Only 66 sleeps away until the Thank You dinner. 

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Dear Ellen N,

 

I hope this email finds you well. I am writing to express my deepest gratitude for the beautiful quilt you created for me through the Aussie Hero Quilts organisation. I was genuinely moved when I received it, and I cannot thank you enough for your time, effort, and the love you put into making it.

 

The quilt is not just a physical item, but a symbol of warmth, care, and the incredible support that people like you extend to us. I absolutely love the dedication and craftsmanship that went into its creation, and I will fondly take it to all my future postings as a memory of my peacekeeping time here in South Sudan.

 

I want you to know that this quilt will always hold a special place in my heart. It will not only provide comfort during my service but will also be a cherished keepsake that I will carry with me long after. Your kindness and thoughtfulness have touched me deeply, and I feel so fortunate to have been the recipient of such a wonderful gift.

 

Your efforts through Aussie Hero Quilts make a significant difference in the lives of many, and I am incredibly grateful to have been one of the lucky ones to receive your work.

 

Wishing you all the best, and hoping you know how much joy your gift brought me!

 

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Dear Pennie T

Thank you so much for the laundry bag you made me.  I love it and think its amazing.

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Dearest Kirsten O, Philomena H and Joan B,

 

It was with great pleasure that I recently received my Aussie Hero Quilt, which you created. I am humbled by your  generosity and skill in creating this fantastic quilt in recognition of my service. I thought I would take this  opportunity to say a very big thank you and provide some meaning regarding the requested symbology. 

I joined the Royal Australia Navy 16 days shy of my 16th birthday and stayed for 42 years. Smiley was the nickname I was given after joining the Navy as a junior recruit. When I joined, I had two missing front teeth due to a car accident as a child and was very quickly given my nickname. As a result of thirteen of my fellow Junior Recruits joining the Submarine Squadron my nickname followed me and is still used today when I talk to the community of ex-submariners. A funny story is at the time, I was the only person in the squadron with my surname. Later, another person with the same surname joined the squadron and inherited the nickname “Smiley” as it had become associated with the surname. 

After completing my initial recruit and category training, I spent 19 formative years in the Submarine Squadron, represented by the dolphins (Submarine Qualification Badge) and the “O”merang. During that time, I had postings to the four submarines represented on my quilt. I had various “inboard” jobs, including operating the Submarine Simulators at HMAS Watson and instructing at the Submarine School at HMAS Platypus. It was during my time as an instructor that I completed my Bachelor’s Degree in Adult Vocational Education, followed by a Master of Education. 

On 10 Jan 1999, crazily 20 years exactly to the date I originally joined the Navy, I took a Commission in the RAN as a Training Systems Officer. As a Training Officer, I primarily worked in the warfare space with 7 years at HMAS Watson as the senior Training Officer, firstly as a LCDR for three years and then as the inaugural CMDR for four years. Between these two postings, I was appointed as the Executive Officer (2nd in command) of HMAS Kuttabul. This was a challenging job but a highlight nonetheless. I finished my career as the Deputy Director of Training Systems working at the Navy Training Force Headquarters, where I was responsible for the operation of the training system across the whole of the Navy.

Since discharging, I have worked for a private company, contracting primarily back to Defence, providing training services. I now live with my wife and our two teenage sons,  on the Northern Beaches in Sydney.

Again, thank you all for your wonderful handiwork. Rest assured, the quilt has become a treasured heirloom and is very much appreciated.

 

Yours Sincerely

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Good afternoon Christine C,

 

Thank you so very much for my beautiful quilt, I received it today, upon my return to the ship.  Also thank you for lovely letter, the tim tams and hand cream, I really appreciate them.  I would also like to say thank you to yourself for your work as a nurse and teacher, you are also an Aussie Hero. 

 

You have perfectly captured my love of Navy and the units that I have served on.  

I have two children a daughter (29) who is a chef and a son (24) who has followed my footsteps and is also in the Navy. Our daughter has been overseas for a few years, in the US and Canada, but we have had the privilege of having her and her partner home in Australia for the last 12 months.  Our son is in WA and my family and I have just returned from a week with him. My husband and I live in Sydney, at the moment with our 4 yr old Staffy, called Bruce.

 

Thank you again.

 

Kind regards,

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Dear Philomena H,

Jan-Maree Ball and Leo Davies visited me on my last working day as Chief of the Defence Force to present the magnificent quilt you made for me. Thank you so very much! 

I was wondering why my wife unexpectedly appeared in the office and then Jan and Leo. It was a very well executed operation by my staff and the Aussie Hero Quilts team. And when I spread the quilt out it became clear that my wife was in on it from the beginning!

You have very sensitively and skilfully displayed highlights of my life and service career in a quilt I shall cherish and which will get a considerable workout in our home.

My best wishes in your continuing quilting adventures. I have attached a photo of the quilt, now on the bed. It is a masterpiece of which you should be very proud. I am delighted and deeply grateful for your kindness and generosity of spirit, not just to me but to all our service personnel. 

Again thank you and take care. I will try to get to the dinner on 26 October as a proud quilt recipient. 

Regards,

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Hi Ruth S,

 

Just wanted to say thank you for the laundry bag. It is very much appreciated and will see a lot of usage. I especially like my units custom patch.

 

Thank you,

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Hi Bel P,

I received my laundry bag a few weeks ago, or more accurately my wife got it while I was away again.

I wanted to say thank you so much for the time and effort you put into making it. It will be something I hold onto.

The deployment earlier this year that triggered me to get the laundry bag is about my 5th since I went to Afghanistan almost a decade ago, and I had always missed the boat of getting orders. It really is a huge boost of morale to now have one, and it will be an excellent reminder.

Thanks again, and thank you for your letter as well. I hope you have a great remainder of 2024.

Cheers,

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Dear Ruth S,

 

I am writing to say thank you so much for the wonderful presentation that you made for me.

 

We were presented with a fine package of memorabilia last night at the reunion welcome meet and greet.

 

The organizing committee conducted themselves extremely well for the gathering all things together for the meet here in Darwin for Vietnam Veterans / Long Tan Day.

 

We are all staying at a Resort out along the Stuart Highway. It is an ideal place to stay even though its not amongst the shops and congestion of the main city center.

The cabins are just ideal, and the facilities are all that is required with a Bar & Bistro, swimming pool and numerous other offerings.

 

We have an interesting itinerary of places to visit and of course the central function for the Service in Bees Creek on Sunday the 18th

 

Its so good to catch up with our platoon mates and their wives once again and reminisce on all the funny things that happened with our times together.

 

Of course, each one of us are scattered far and wide across Australia and many of us don’t see each other until we have reunions like this every two years.

Unfortunately, as the years pass, we are losing more and more to age and illness, so this is a sad condition, however we share details of any who are not travelling so well.

 

Once again Ruth, thank you for the kind and thoughtful work you put together for me and no doubt others.

Keep your grown-up grandchildren close and love them every day just as I do to my five.

 

Thanks

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The making of this quilt was won by the recipients husband at last years AHQ Thank You dinner.  He elected to have it made for his wife for her birthday. She looks very happy so I think he made the right decision!

Dear Philomena H,

I am the lucky recipient of one of your beautiful quilts. I just wanted to thank you so much for your incredible work in creating this quilt for me and to let you know how much I love it.

My husband, who serves in the Army Reserves, arranged it all as a surprise and gave it to me on my birthday. It is such a privilege to receive a quilt made especially for me, with a design that incorporates all the things I love, so I was really touched.

It’s clear to see the skill and effort that has gone into creating this quilt. I am so impressed by the way you have been able to bring together all the different fabric patterns, colours and elements to make up the overall design and particularly the way you stitched in the shape of the musical notation.

I also enjoyed reading your letter and finding out a bit about your story. What an exciting and full life you have lived so far! I grew up in the Northern Beaches of Sydney which is where I got my love of the beach and the ocean and we now live quite close to you actually, which is a lovely part of Sydney to raise a family.

Your quilt making has certainly brought me joy and I will always treasure this amazing quilt.

Thank you again for all that you do.

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Hi Ruth S,

I am currently deployed in South Sudan and I received my laundry bag, made by you.

Thank you so much for brightening my day  It is a lovely reminder of home and a great keepsake to remember my time here!

For a bit of background about me, I am a Transport Officer in the Army, as you probably guessed by the motifs I chose. 

This is my second overseas deployment, but the first one with the United Nations and over such a long period of time. The previous one was a quick response to the crisis in the Middle East in October 2023, so I've spent a bit of time away from home recently.

 

Before deploying to UNMISS in South Sudan, I was posted to RAAF Amberley as an Operations Officer at the Joint Movement Section South Queensland. I am not a local Queenslander, but I must admit that it is a very nice place to live and I hope to be able to settle in the vicinity of Brisbane for a few years once I come back. 

Before that I had postings in rural West Victoria and spent some time in NSW in Holsworthy and at RAAF Richmond. 

My partner is also in the Army, an Infantry Officer. While he has two beautiful twin daughters from a previous relationship, we do not yet have children together. Coming here to South Sudan meant we had to put family planning on hold for a little while!

I hope you and your family are well. 

Kind Regards,

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Until next week keep your letters, emails and photos coming in.  

Tuesday's would be so totally boring without them!

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