I am a bit late sharing the latest adventures of our Travelling 15th Anniversary Laundry Bags but I think these were worth waiting for. Enjoy. 

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During a visit to Williamtown at the invitation of 464SQN I met Dion. I asked him if he had received an Aussie Hero Quilt and he was quick to answer and tell me how much receiving his quilt meant to him. We receive so many different and varied requests and often don’t know the significance of them so it is wonderful to understand the meaning of this quilt that Dion received.

“I ordered my quilt when I was deployed to the Middle East in 2019.

Well before I joined the Australian Defence Force, my military friends from the ADF’s First Joint Public Affairs Unit (1JPAU) – would talk about how proud they were to serve and deploy in Afghanistan – the experiences they had, and the memories they had made. 

It was then I set a goal for myself – join the ADF as a Reservist Military Public Affairs Officer with the goal of deploying, serving and seeing the snow-capped peaks of Afghanistan myself.

Some seven hard years after completing the Masters in Journalism to qualify, successfully recruiting into the Air Force and going to exercises and attending countless courses and achieving the right qualifications – I was offered the opportunity to spend 6 months on deployment.

Yes, I did get to see the snow-capped mountains of Afghanistan, and this quilt captured that goal, and every day I got back to my room, I was reminded of what I had set as a goal – and achieved.

I continue to serve proudly in the Air Force’s Public Affairs 464SQN – it is a gift to be given that opportunity and every day in uniform is another adventure.”

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I sent one of our 15^th Anniversary laundry bags to an ex-Navy Diver, Scott who is the mastermind of Saltwater Veterans an amazing organisation which, first and foremost, is an ACNC-registered Health Promotion Charity whose mission is to empower current and former serving veterans and their families by fostering meaningful impact, wellbeing, and social connection through sailing. I have been cheering them on since the early days and so was delighted when they agreed to take photos with one of our bags. Scott thoroughly understood the suggestion “Have fun with it” and he reached out to the Navy Diving School. LEUT Ben arranged for these photos and also send this message…

“My experience with AHQ is twofold.  The first was on HMAS Parramatta in 2011/12.  This was my first exposure to AHQ and I recall being humbled at the thought and generosity that someone far away was thinking about us.  That was a nice feeling especially as it was over the Christmas period and a pretty lonely time as you can imagine, even when you’re surrounded by people on a ship you can’t leave

The second, which is when I received the quilt that’s on my wall, was on HMAS Success in 2014/15.  I must have written a letter about who I am and what I was doing which is why the finished product was so awesome and fitted me so well.  I wish I could remember who made the quilt but I recall sending a letter of appreciation in return. I love it, it’s great.

I think what you and your fantastic people do is incredible.  Unless you’ve been sent away for a long period of time, missed birthdays, births, weddings, holidays, Christmas’, anniversary’s, deaths, funerals and all the other important life events, it’s sort of hard to really articulate the feeling of being away when that stuff happens and you missed it, but you volunteered for it and missing those things is a consequence of choice.  Knowing that there are people at home in Australia, thinking and really taking the time to make an effort to bring you a little material joy is just amazing, it’s very humbling and such a thrill to receive this gift. Clearly I cherish mine, it’s on my office wall for all to see and I get lots of comments and compliments about it.

Thanks Again Jan and all the legends at Aussie Hero Quiltfor your thoughts, efforts and sending a little joy to far flung corners of the world for our ADF people.

Keep up the And thanks to the divers who took our humble little laundry bag beneath the sea for a couple of great photos!

 
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@Saltwater Veterans is a great organisation and I am really happy to say that I have been cheering them on almost since their beginning. 

As I said in yesterday’s post, they understood the brief to “have fun” with the laundry bag and sent in these great photos. Taken during their ANZAC Sail 2026, some of the members even brought along their Aussie Hero Quilts and laundry bags to include in the photos which is just fabulous. Thanks for your support Saltwater Veterans.  

“MANLY | ANZAC Sail 2026 💛⚓️💙 Aussie Hero Quilts | A day to honour family, friends, and the wider community who support and have supported our military service.

This year also marks the 15th anniversary of @aussieheroquilts and we were proud to stand alongside them in celebration of the incredible work they do.

There are people in our community who genuinely care — who want deployed ADF members to feel valued, and to bring comfort, colour, and connection through a quilt when someone deployed, or is wounded and returns home. Jan-Maree and her dedicated team of volunteers are exactly that.

The impact is extraordinary:

🧵 17,700+ quilts

🧺 38,400 laundry bags

All handmade with care, often personalised for the recipient.

Stay Salty 💛⚓️💙”

Note the action photo when Scott forgot to give the crew the bag before they sailed!!!

Thanks again for the awesome photos! I hope we can continue supporting each other, together we are stronger. 

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Many of our Aussie Hero stories are never shared publicly out of respect for the privacy recipients and families involved. This one, however, is shared at the request and with the permission of the mother and daughter involved, @Kathryn Rae and Imogen.

I first arranged a quilt for Kat in 2013/14.  In August 2017 Kat’s husband, Andrew Christie lost his battle with mental health after his deployments and took his own life. I reached out to Kat and offered her a Fallen Warrior Quilt in memory of Andrew but instead she asked if she could have a happy quilt for Imogen. Fortunately, the perfect quilt had been donated to us and so I delivered that to Kat and her lovely little daughter.

When I asked Kat if she wanted to participate in the 15th Anniversary laundry bag program with photos for our social media she said an immediate yes. After her photos had been taken Kat asked if Imogen could have a photo taken as well. My answer was “of course”. Imogen has sent her own message to accompany her photos.

“Thank you JM the first time you met me was when I was 2.  Just after my dad died you gave me an amazing garden quilt that I still use today. 💕💕💕

If really meant a lot. In the hardest time of our lives Aussie hero quilts helped us feel loved and cared for.”

I feel it is a huge privilege to share Imogen’s words and also that we were able to wrap her in love at such a tough time. It is also important to remember that few veterans serve alone. 

Today just so happens to be Andrew’s birthday and so a fitting day to share part of his family’s story as a way of remembering him. All photos are shared with Kat’s blessing.  Andrew may be gone but he will never be forgotten.  Lest We Forget.

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As well as looking after currently serving Australian Defence Force members, we also look after former serving members.  The foundation of what we do is to thank Australian veterans for their service and the sacrifice their service asked of them and their loved ones. I really believe that it is never too late to say thank you.

“I served in East Timor from 2002 to 2003, well before AHQ was founded. I remember watching others receive their quilts longingly and jealously over the years. That’s why it meant so much to finally receive my beautiful quilt this year. 

My quilt beautifully represents all aspects of my life brought together. Added to that, it keeps me warm!  Thank you so much!”

That is it for this week. 

Til next time keep spreading the word and happy stitching! 

Jan-Maree xx