Grati-Tuesday 25 Jun 19

G'day all

Check out these awesome messages... one from one of our awesome recipients in Townsville 

and then we got this message from Rita C one of our quilters at the airport on her way to the States.  She said....

"I was in the Qantas lounge and he saw me walk by with all my patches on. 

Stopped me to say thank you. He is a nurse and is THRILLED with his quilt and LB. He was with another Aussie navy guy and a US navy gal.   Might also have another sewer for you. Young gal working asked me about the patches and will tell her mother about us. Got lots of your cards to pass out"

Great work Rita!!

Thanks so much for the wonderful quilt and laundry bag. It made me so happy at a difficult time   ......

First up... a great photo of a quilt made by Bev U

......

Dear Shirley,

Would like to firstly thank you from the bottom of my heart for your time and hard work that you have put in for not only myself but for all service men and women. The Quilt I have received from you is sensational, the quality, the design and the colours, everything is outstanding. I will certainly cherish this and it will also get a massive amount of use from not only myself but my family as well.

 I know the time and effort you and everyone involved in the Aussie Hero Quilt organisation is greatly appreciated by all service men and women who have received something from you. The joy I know I had when receiving mine I could also see in all my colleagues when they also received theirs. We don’t ask for anything in return for what we do, and would do it all again at the drop of a hat if our country asked us. However a simple gesture of your time to produce this Quilt especially for me a complete stranger is more than I could have asked for. It will be a constant reminder that there are still so many caring, selfless and considerate people in what can be an ugly place.

Well a little about myself, I have served within the Army for 15 years now and still love it as much now as I did when I enlisted. This will be my third tour to the Middle East Regions, along with various other deployments and Operations around the world. I am more than happy to continue to do what I do as long as I am required and have the ability to do so. However I would not be able to do what I do without the support of my very strong and beautiful family I have at home.

I am married to my best friend and we have 5 beautiful children. We have 2 Boys 19 and 15 and 3 girls 16, 11 and 5. So to say that my wife has her hands full while I’m away is an understatement. The kids are awesome (well sometimes lol) and help her out massively while I’m away. Although it would be very difficult for them all to not have me at home they all understand what I am doing and the reasons for it. I serve and do what I have to so others do not have to.

Once again I would like to say a huge thank you for the gift that you have given me, it is greatly appreciated and will be well loved for many years to come.

Kind Regards
......

Good evening Bridget,

Firstly, I would like to thank you for your hard work and devotion that you put into making these quilts and laundry bags for ADF members. I know when I received my laundry bag I was absolutely blown away by the end product. I'm so thrilled with what you have made for me, it's allowed me to have something with me everyday that I know my daughter would love too (because of the minions). The bag has also been very handy when I need to do washing.

You letter was also thorough with the history of the Aussie Quilts founder and the number of quilts and laundry bags that have been done. I'm absolutely amazed and grateful for the work done by not only yourself but everyone at Aussie Quilts. I know my colleagues over here in the MER all love the quilts and laundry bags they have received. You have made alot of Defence members very happy.

You sound like a very accomplished person with a wonderful family. You must be a very kind, compassionate and dedicated person to spend 40 years nursing. I myself was studying a nursing degree before deploying earlier this year and am hoping to re-commence the degree once I return to Australia.  My husband is also a serving member of the ADF and he received an Aussie Hero Quilt when he last deployed. He was also blown away by the quilt that was made for him.

A huge thank you for the time and effort that you put into making my laundry bag.

Kind Regards,

......

From one of our amazing Townsville flood survivors.....


Thank you. I would just like to say that I just received another wonderful laundry bag (Star Wars theme) from your organisation. When I was last overseas, I was lucky enough to get one of your laundry bags. Even though my family teased me about the size and wonderful colour I chose, we used it everywhere we went.

Although we donated all of our belongings to Mother Nature in February, we did not lose life nor limb. And it is these little gestures that bring a smile to our faces that we really appreciate. So thank you.

Cheers
.....

Dear Bridget,

Thank you!  Thank you for the wonderful quilt I received whilst deployed to Iraq.  This was everything I hoped for and provided much warmth and comfort during a cold winter.  Thank you for your 40 years of service to nursing.  As a nurse myself, I have so much respect for those who dedicate their lives for caring for others.  Thank you for thinking of our service members and now supporting them through this wonderful way.

Jan-Maree is a wonderful woman, but without the support from the large group of volunteers the amazing efforts of Aussie Hero Quilts wouldn’t be possible.

I know this letter is delayed and I’m sorry.  The tempo on deployment was high and days blended into weeks and months.

I also wanted to send you this coin which I’ve been waiting to receive.  I know it’s not much, but please accept this as thanks for the smile your quilt brought me each day.

I was deployed as a nursing officer coordinating medical evacuations.  I was an embed in an environment with coalition members from many nations.  

Yours sincerely,

......

Dear Bridget,

It was a lovely surprise to receive your quilt in the mail today.  I must admit I was a bit confused about the “Anne of Green Gables” references until I read your letter…..it makes perfect sense now.  Knowing that the fabric came from our great mates in Canada makes it even more special!  So many, many thanks for all your hard work.  I absolutely love it.

Thanks also for the letter about yourself and your family.  It really is a great honour to represent Australia in any way, when you think that we are representing good people like yourselves all the way over here in Afghanistan.

My job over here is to mentor 2 female instructors at the Afghan National Army Officer Academy.  It’s very interesting and quite inspirational to work alongside women who want to serve their country in a country where women face so many challenges on a daily basis.  Every day makes me recognise how lucky we are back home in Australia.

Thanks again to you, Jan-Maree and all the amazing and talented sewing ladies who crate masterpieces for us all across the world.  It is truly and deeply appreciated.

Cheers,

.......

Hey Caroline,

I was cleaning out my cabin today as HMAS Success is decommissioning and we have to have everything off the ship by Sunday and came across the letter you placed in the lovely laundry bag you made last year and which I have been using the last 12 months.  Your letter was in a pile of “things to do”, which is to thank you for the laundry bag, it is greatly appreciated.

Thanks again, it’s a pleasure serving for you, despite it being challenging at times, esp. when my 2 year old son says “I don’t want you to go back to the ship daddy”.

Kind regards

......

Good Afternoon Chris,

                

I have received one of your Laundry Bag “DC cartoon” I love all the Super Heroes movies, Thank you.

                I don’t have much story about my life. After year 12 I join the Army. All I want is to see people being happy it also make me happy, that why I join the army. I live in Townsville for now but I like to go live in Canberra or Brisbane.

Thank you again for your support.  

For your consideration,

......

Hey Kerry McL! 

Thankyou so so much for my gifts!!! I love them!!!!! 

I’m glad you saw a connection with me through the lab theme. Aw I miss the QLD weather, I’m originally from the Gold Coast, so I live at the beach and miss it so much. I also love winter as well so I’m missing that a lot also! 

That’s great to hear you love your job! Those kids would be lucky to have you. I’m loving my job over here too, I have just under 5 months to go. I’m posted in QLD and have all my family on the gold coast so I’m used to seeing them often. 

Thank you again, you put a big smile on my face. 

.....

Hi Robyn,

Thank you so much for my quilt, I love it! My work mates and I are amazed at your skills, it is truly amazing. It really means a lot to me that you have taken the time and effort to create one of the best quilts I’ve seen for me.

I really like the Victorian fashion panel on the quilt. I love those dresses. My daughters, 5 and almost 4, sometimes wear the older style dresses and it’s beautiful. I love it, it makes them look extra adorable. I do miss them and my partner a lot.

Thank you again for my amazing quilt.

Regards,

....

Good morning Jan-Maree,

I am writing to you to thank you for sending myself and the ship’s company new laundry bags.

I choose a very colourful one which brightens up my cabin. It’s a change from everything being grey and green.

We are on deployment at the moment and the kind gesture goes a long way.

Please thank your team of volunteers for their effort and thoughts.

.....

What great messages.

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

Jan-Maree xx

Aussie Hero Quilts Requests 24 June 19

Hi all,

Please, please, please read this preamble each week as the info does change. I am receiving a lot of questions from people who have not read this info so you would make it easier for me too if you took a few minutes to read it.

We have a really small list this week but have no fear more requests coming soon. We are just in the middle of a change over period.

Priority Quilts and Laundry Bags….

We have one priority laundry bag this week.  It is the first one “NSW Waratahs - Rugby Union” and it needs to be in the mail 29 July or preferably earlier. There is no leeway after 29 July.

We also have two priority quilts this week, one of which needs a LB too. You are welcome to nominate to do JUST the quilt or JUST the Laundry Bag. You don’t have to take on both.   These ones need to be in the mail no later than 29 July in order to make sure they arrive before the member comes home. I know that is the same post by date as the other quilts and bags on this list but 29 July is the latest they can go. Obviously earlier is better. The urgent ones are….

My name, the Rising Sun and the Ammo Tech patch (I can send you the Ammo Tech Badge)	M	B	2
Dark Red, with a  Gold Rising Sun and my family name underneath please.	M	Q	3

The post by date for ALL other items on this list is 29 July please.  

PLEASE note the date and let me know if you have any problems getting your quilt/LB away on time. In fact, if you are going to be late posting it please let me know BEFORE you post it.  Also, if this time frame is too tight for you, there are options, just email me to discuss.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE copy the ENTIRE line if you wish to nominate for a quilt or laundry bag. 

For example….

Marvel Theme. Ironman     M       LB      1

This is really important to make sure that neither you nor I copy the wrong number which could lead to me giving you the wrong details for specific request.  If you find it hard to copy and paste, please copy the line out as follows…  

Decoding The Columns

The first column is the theme or preferences requested.

The second column indicates the gender of the recipient.

The third column is as follows.

B=both quilt and laundry bag (feel free to nominate to JUST do the laundry bag if you wish)

Q= just a quilt

LB = just a laundry bag

F= female

M= male

The last column with the number is a simple registration number for me to use… it is only relevant for this week only and will change if the request is still on the list next week. Once you have received the recipient’s details you will need to use those to refer to the recipient from then on if need be.

If there is more than one request on this list that you would be happy to do, I suggest that you send me a list of requests and tell me how many you want to be allocated…. i.e. one of the following please….  There are always a few requests that everyone wants to do (and I can never pick them) so if the first one you ask for is taken then I can allocate another from your list if I have a list.

  

If you don’t understand what people are asking for or where to get some of the bits and pieces, then please ask me but the following might also be helpful.

There are a few requests that would like the HQJTF crest or the FSE badge on them.  I can send these to you to incorporate.

Australian National Flag - you can buy panels at Spotlight – ask for them if you can’t find them.

Afghanistan flag – I can send you one.

Rising Sun, RAAF Crest, Navy Crest, Coat of Arms, RAEME and other badges – ask me about them, I can often send you some to include if your request needs them.

If they want some text and it is too much for you to applique, I may be able to get it embroidered and sent to you to be sewn on the quilt or sewn into it.  Just let me know what words you want, what colour fabric and what colour thread… keep it simple please.   Also include your address in the email to save me time please.

I can help you with football colours and logos of teams etc. Just ask me. Most of the logos are simple or you can just add team names if you want to … team colours are enough also.

Please think about what the request involves before you take it on. Google, ask questions, email me, make sure you can complete it to your satisfaction before you commit to it if possible please.

Please let me know if you have any other questions.

Cheers

Jan-Maree

NSW Waratahs - Rugby Union	M	LB	1
Brisbane Lions AFL team.	M	LB	1
Cronulla sharks	M	LB	1
Sydney Swans.	M	LB	1
tall sunflowers on it.	F	LB	1
Transformers Bumblebee - yellow and black	F	LB	1
Desert meets the Sea theme? Combination of Australian outback (desert) and ocean (deep blues and greens). A small '2019' and surname please	M	LB	1
Melbourne Storm NRL Team	M	LB	1
My name, the Rising Sun and the Ammo Tech patch (I can send you the Rising Sun and Ammo Tech Badge)	M	B	2
Dark Red, with a  Gold Rising Sun ( I can send you a Rising Sun) and my family name underneath please.	M	Q	3
Blue, Motor-cross and Lego	M	Q	4
Surfing	M	Q	5
Melbourne Storm	M	Q	6
West Coast Eagles colours (AFL), with Eagle in Centre and FSE Logo (I can send you one)   bottom	M	Q	7
QLD - State of Origin, FSE logo (I can send you one)  in a corner.	F	Q	8
Blue.  Trains/Thomas the tank engine theme  (reminds me of my son). I enjoy Soccer and Music (drums).	M	Q	9
Melbourne Storm NRL team logo with both purple and black as the colours, Australian flag, HQJTF and FSE logos  (I can send you the HGJTF and FSE logos)	M	Q	10
West Tigers NRL team logo with orange and black, Australian flag, HQJTF, FSE and Raeme logos (I can send you the three logos) please	M	Q	11
something "military-esque" (he is army so Rising Sun, his operation name, red hopping roo) or based on video games	M	Q	12
Could I have the Australian flag please and  I also love nature, the ocean and animals.	F	B	13
Blue.  RAAF Roundel, hercules, C-17 aircraft and something to remind me of the desert such as camels.  "OP ACCORDION 2019"	M	Q	14
Road Bicycles, Brisbane Broncos, Beaches	M	Q	16
OPERATION ACORDION, RAAF crest, RAAF Bomb Disposal Badge ( can provide the badge to piece in) or EOD emblems on I would much appreciate it.	M	Q	17
Sydney Roosters NRL theme team colours (red,white blue) and the Rooster mascot.	F	Q	18
Here are some ideas that you could use (don’t try to get them all in please!!!) African savanna or animals theme/colours white UN C130s, UN flag ( can send you one to piece in), surfing, triathlons, African savanna or animals theme/colours. "Come fly with me"	M	B	19
UAE and Australia (landmarks from both countires or flags etc UAE flag is easy to piece)	M	Q	20
Rising Sun and the flags of Australia and Afghanistan (I can send you an AFG Flag and Rising Sun) native flowers or poppies would be appreciated.	M	Q	21
caramel Dapple Dachshund/ Blue Chihuahua quilt (caramel, navy blue and white) Photo avbl	M	Q	22
RAE Engineer colours (base dark red with dark blue vertical lines). "RAE SAPPERS" with the Lazy E (all in white font) and a black kangaroo. I can send you the RAE Badge	M	Q	23
Love purple, blue and green colours.  Can I please have Australian and UAE flags somewhere, doesn’t have to be main feature.UAE flag is easy to piece.  Could I please have no name on the quilt and laundry bag as I would like to eventually pass onto my daughter.	F	B	24
Anything to do with Wombats	F	Q	25
I would like it to be the Joint Task Force 633 unit patch(I can send you one) with the kangaroo, plus my deployment dates. I'd love a border of dollar signs or poppies.	F	Q	26
QlD Maroons (NRL State of Origin Team)	M	Q	27