G’day Anne Hnr,

 

Happy belated New Year! Mail is slow here, it is taking between a month and 7ish weeks (I just got my Christmas box from my wife today too).

Lately emails aren’t much of an improvement on that either, with emails getting blocked both directions by the gateway and IT moving at a glacial pace.

 

I didn’t expect that my Christmas message would get quite the reach it did, I was on the news for about half of Australia it seems.

 

I was not aware that the quilts worked on a bidding system, however this makes sense. I love this initiative, from the early concept for the wounded warriors to now, it makes you feel a little loved and appreciated.

Whilst conditions aren’t particularly austere here it is still hard missing all of the firsts (Christmas, birthday, first steps, first proper words). So the fact that a team of volunteers care enough to dedicate their time and resources to us is genuinely heartwarming.

Tim Tams and Mint Slice are always a winner. It’s a great, safe choice to include. In the space of 20min there are 2 left.

 

That sounds like a very wholesome life, the ideal retirement. Are grandkids as fun as I imagine? Only the good and then quiet nights?

Serious bird watching? Do you track the birds you see? Photographs? Or just happy to watch the rosellas on the porch (I actually don’t know what birds are around TAS, I really need to get down there and see it)?

 

A bit about myself:

I love the ocean, so the quilt seemed appropriate despite the deserts here. There is diving available here, however like everything else in the UAE, it costs squillions.

My wife, daughter (who turned 1 a month ago) and two dogs (a German shepherd named Bunny and a golden retriever named Ralph) have just moved from Sydney to Canberra (about 2 weeks before I deployed), not much ocean there either.

 

I was in the Army for 11 years and then jumped over to RAAF 2 years ago, for the pay, lifestyle and dreams of a work-life balance. I have loved my time in Defence, however a little less Army feels healthy.

Beyond that, I’m a volunteer firefighter. Between work, being a new dad (she’s 13 months old, of which I’ve spent max 4 with her, work gets in the way more than I would have hoped) and firefighting I don’t have much capacity for much else. My life is entirely consumed, however I am certainly happy.

 

Thank you so much for making my quilt, I am truly grateful that you chose to create this for me.

I am appreciative of the work you do and I know the team think likewise about AHQ in general.

A truly great thing you do for us.

 

Kind Regards,

Good Afternoon Colleen S,

 

Apologies it’s taken me so long to get back to you, but I wanted to thank you very much for the laundry bag. The darker blue is completely fine and I love the Pikachu.

The time and effort yourself and the other volunteers put in is very much appreciated by all serving members.

 

A bit about me:

 

This is my 15^th year serving with most of my time being spent on Op Resolute which has been challenging but also rewarding. I enlisted in Brisbane as a 17yr old straight out of high school, postings have taken me all over the country and more recently conducting deployments overseas to Hawaii and India. I have 2 fur-babies at home (Archer the Japanese Spitz and Lana the Labrador) who definitely keep my wife occupied with their antics while I’m away.

 

Kind Regards,