Happy Wednesday Friends!

Hope you have bought your tickets to our very special 15th Anniversary Thank You Weekend. Only 3 sleeps till the Saturday night dinner.

Don't forget to order your 2027 AHQ calendar.

Please enjoy another wonderful collection of gratitude letters and images.

So, grab a nice warm cuppa or cold drink (depending on where you live!), sit back and relax while you soak up some well-deserved gratitude!

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Afternoon Janice B,

I wanted to take the time to thank you for the stunning quilt you made for me. Everything that you did to make it unique and personalised was spot on and greatly appreciated. There is not another one even close to it, I think I may have lost ownership of it though. My son is too a massive fan of Redbull Racing, often staying up late to watch qualifying and races.

A little about myself. I am married with 2 children, 15 and 12, both in high school. My daughter wishes to follow in her mother's footsteps and become a flight attendant with QANTAS and my son is a keen gamer that dreams of becoming a pilot some day also for QANTAS. The last time I had a quilt made was when I was deployed to the middle east on HMAS Melbourne, whilst deployed my son was born and I got to meet him for the first time when we pulled back alongside Sydney, so it's kind of fitting that he has taken ownership of the quilt you made for me. Our family also have the travelling bug visiting various countries such as Germany, France, Italy, Japan, England, Korea, America and Singapore. We are big believers that history and nature is far better learnt with your own eyes than in a classroom. My daughter will be heading to Europe in November as part of a school trip visiting places such as the Vatican and the Eiffel Tower

I have served in the Navy for 27 years and have so far made it to the rank of Chief Petty Officer. I am currently serving on HMAS Arunta based in Sydney. I have attached an image of my son and I holding the quilt you made.

I am a passionate sailor and chef that's always seeking to provide the best meals for whichever team and platform I serve on. Over the years I have served on 12 ships in the Fleet and hosted countless official receptions and cocktail parties for foreign dignitaries in their countries.

My family and I have closely followed Aussie Hero Quilts over the years and have met the founder. We were one of the first to donate to her after losing her house years ago.

Thank you again for all that you do for our serving veterans; your heartfelt quilts and laundry bags are received with much love and appreciation.

Regards,

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Dear Aussie Hero Quilts Team,

I recently received a quilt and laundry bag whilst on pre deployment. I would like to sincerely thank you for the quilt and laundry bag you made for me. Before being assigned to Op Southern Discovery, I was not aware of Aussie Hero Quilts, so receiving your gift was both a surprise and a privilege.

The time, effort, and care that went into creating these items is greatly appreciated. It is nice to know that there are volunteers supporting Defence members in such a thoughtful and personal way.

Thank you again for your generosity and for everything you do.

Kind regards,

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G'day Beverley F,

I'm (very belatedly!) writing to give you a heartful thankyou for my quilt (the one with the red,yellow and green colours and the camel) - it's perfect and looks great on my couch now!

I apologise for my late response to your letter, unfortunately our operation (OP ACCORDION)had a bit of disruption to normal mail servicesthis year; I'm writing this to you having just returned home to Darwin.

Thanks for the details of your husband and family's service, and your kids and grandkids - youhave a very impressive family! Also, one of my sisters is a special education teacher and I hearall about the challenges of that career regularly - I have nothing but admiration for anyone whohas worked in that profession.

| laughed that your round-Australia trips seemed to coincide with Navy reunions, I can't imaginehow that happened! Now that I'm back I am looking forward to some travel in Australia this

year myself, preferably in the warmer months. Darwin is at the tail-end of the dry season now,and the weather is absolutely gorgeous although starting to heat up. For the rest of this year I'mlooking forward to spending as little time as possible at work, and as much time as possibleexploring. I'm hoping to visit the Kimberley's next year!

Thanks again for the fantastic quilt, and please keep up the great work, it's really appreciated byall the people overseas!

Kind Regards and all the best,

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Dear JennyR,

I wanted to send you a quick message of thanks for the amazing Laundry Bag (and treats) that I received from you recently! It arrived safely and I absolutely love it!

I have to say this is not my first laundry bag through the team at ‘Aussie Hero Quilts’ but it is honestly my favourite! It’s always amazing to see how you take the themes requested and turn them into something so personal. I can promise you that it will be put to good use over the many years ahead in my job. I also had a good chuckle at the ’senior service’ comment - much appreciated!

I also wanted to express my gratitude for your kind words and support in your letter. It was lovely to read and means a lot to me, as I’m sure it does to all the service members you have supported. Making around 300 laundry bags is no small feat and it must be special to know that you have brought happiness to that many people. It was touching to hear about your family’s experience in the military as well. What a special and sobering moment it must have been to speak at each service you attended.

I want to extend my own thanks for your family’s service.

Thank you for the brief background on your life! It is an awesome spot to live. It sounds like your family has a deep connection with caring for others in many ways, both human and animal alike. 62 dogs fostered is amazing and thank you for all the military working dogs you have fostered within your lifetime.

To give you a brief background on myself, I grew up in Port Stephens, NSW. I lived there until I was almost 22 years old with my mum, dad, brother and sister. In my early adult years, I worked as a lifeguard on the beaches in the local region and started a part-time tiling apprenticeship with my dad. Whilst I enjoyed that time, I always knew I wanted to do something either military or emergency services related, namely a firefighter at that point. I am glad I landed in the Navy though! I love to surf, hike and go camping when I can but I have been a bit slack with organising some trips around work lately. I have been posted to Sydney, Canberra and Newcastle along with spending quite some time overseas deployed. Although I am in the Navy, I have been thoroughly enjoying working with my RAAF counterparts and learning a whole new service and the quirks that come along with it.

I live with my partner and our fur baby Wilbur, a rescue cat from the local RSPCA. My partner is an avid animal lover herself and is regularly trying to convince me to get a second cat or a dog (I don’t think we have the space)! We both met in Sydney and she followed me up here to support my career which was very much appreciated. However, she is enjoying the change of pace and scenery. By the way, she is a self-proclaimed ‘chocolate addict’ and you happened to send me one of her favourite chocolate bars! It was shared and enjoyed by the both of us!

I love my career and being in Defence is quite unique. It isn’t just a job; it is a lifestyle and one that is exactly what I was seeking. Again, thank you for all the excellent work you do and I hope the rest of your year is also filled with health and happiness.

Sincerely,

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Good morning Kristie H,

I am just writing you today to tell you how happy I was to receive the laundry bag you made. There was a large variety of bags spread out onboard my ship for us to choose from, but my eyes were drawn straight to yours with the meat pies surrounded by green.

I have been in the Navy for close to 20 years now and despite all the deployments I’ve been on, I’ve never been lucky enough to be on a ship that has received bags, so everyone I saw who had one made me jealous! Now that I finally have one of my own I will ensure I treat it with great care so I can show it off on all my future ships!

Everyone onboard had a smile on their faces yesterday going through them all and picking which suited them the best. So thank you to yourself and everyone else who does what you do it is very much appreciated as we begin our current deployment.

Very much thanks,

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Good afternoon Rita C,

I would just like to say thank you for the bag. I have been in the Navy for 40 years and have never had the pleasure of receiving a bag or a quilt.

Thank You very Much it is greatly appreciated.

Kind Regards,

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Hello Rachel B,

I would like to say the biggest of thanks for the laundry bag that you have created.

When someone said they had the perfect one for me and handed to me I was happy to see it was a gaming bag. When unfolding the bag my face lit up like a Christmas tree to see Fortnite all over it.

As someone who playing videos and enjoys playing Fortnite I am very happy with the laundry bag that I have selected. Thank you again.

Kind Regards,

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Good evening Melissa G,

I am currently deployed overseas with the Army and received a lovely laundry bag accompanied by your kind letter.

Whether it was destiny or silly luck, I raced and rode dirtbikes all my life prior to joining the army and have now received a lovely laundry bag with dirtbikes all over it.

I just thought I would flick you this email to send my appreciation to you from myself and my partner back home for this wonderful gesture, she too thought it was a lovely coincidence.

Where I am currently deployed it is rather humid and hot, so I find myself doing laundry more days than not, so this will come in handy every day.

This gift was a lovely gesture and I am sure that all of the team over here were pleasantly surprised to be handed these.

We appreciate your support and thoughts and I hope this email finds you,

Kind regards,

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Hi Jan-Maree,

Thank you so much for my quilt and laundry bag I love them both. All the time and effort that’s been put into it is amazing.

I’m so sorry it’s taken me so long to get back to you we’ve been very busy onboard but they have been with me the whole time.

King regards

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Hi Rita C,

I've just received your laundry bag.

I have been in the Navy for over 17 years.

I grew up with Harry Potter and was a similar age to the character's as each book was released, so your laundry bag seemed very fitting. My daughter is now just coming to an age where she can read and appreciate the books too.

Although I have been in the Navy for several years, this is the first time I've had the opportunity to receive something from Aussie Hero Quilts. It's a fantastic feeling to receive something donated out of pure love and care for the people who I enlisted to serve for. Its also refreshing looking around my sleeping area and seeing something that is not military issue.

Thank you for all your hard work and tenacity in what seems like a huge number of donations to support members serving or served. I'm unsure of how many replies you must get but it's genuinely appreciated.

Thank you...

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A photo of one of the random laundry bags we sent

to HMAS Dechaineux... the crew were delighted to get them.

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Cheers Catherine D

Until next week keep your letters, emails and photos coming in. Wednesdays would be so totally boring without them!

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