Grati-Tuesday 23rd May 2023

Written by AHQ

23 May 2023

Happy Tuesday Friends!

 
I always love hearing the back stories behind the requested themes of quilts. It really highlights the connection that someone will have with their quilt or laundry bag. 
 
There are a couple of letters below that explain that really well.
Grab a cuppa, sit back and enjoy some well deserved gratitude!

Good Afternoon Sue N,

 

I would like to say a big thankyou for my beautiful quilt and the goodies I received today . The quilt is gorgeous and the little doggo you placed on the front is identical to my little baby at home.

It was meant to be! 

Thankyou for the time and care you have taken to make this quilt I appreciate it very much.

 

Best wishes for the future and I hope you are enjoying your time now  after a long period of lockdowns.


Good afternoon Deb K,

 

I wanted to take the opportunity to thank you for my lovely quilt and laundry bag. I was so happy to receive them, you have done an exceptional job on the design and colours. You are right, I do love the backing fabric. I think it suits me.

 

I do appreciate all the hard work and time that goes in to designing and sewing these quilts and laundry bags. Mine are now amongst my most treasured possessions from my military career.

 

I hope you are well and thank you again for your heartfelt contribution to Aussie Hero Quilts.

 

Regards

Good morning Janis K,

 

Thank you for the quilt that you made. I was very impressed at the final result and couldn’t believe you were able to get the logos of all my favourite teams on there. 

Sport makes up a large part of my identity and gives me something to follow along with, especially when away on deployments.

 

You asked if  I have been to New York (as that is part of the theme chosen)? Well I managed to get over there last year. One of my older brothers offered to pay for me to travel with him to New York and Quebec City last year.

I clearly could not say no to a free trip could I? Whilst the New York Knicks are my favourite team over there, it was their off season. But we did manage to get to watch a New York Yankees baseball game, which was really fun.

Initially, I just started following the Knicks back in the 90’s when my favourite basketball player was traded to them, and I’ve stuck with them since (which sometimes I regret, as they haven’t had success is over 50 years!).

 

You mentioned how hard the last few years have been and I can agree. I was posted to HMAS Stuart during that period and we were deployed overseas. It was a hard slog as we weren’t allowed to step off the ship at any of the foreign ports.

The hardest being when we arrived in Hawaii and could only look at the wharf. We all managed to keep our sanity but I felt sorry for the young sailors who had not been overseas before, whilst I’ve been really fortunate in my 20 years to

visit many countries.

 

I grew up in Victoria, so I’m a Victorian myself. I currently live on the South East of Victoria in a small town, which is a nice little spot.

I live there with my Wife and my son, who is 13. We also have a 2 year old Groodle named Lenny.

I am currently in process of building a house in a seaside suburb. It’s a little town mostly used by retired people or city dwellers who have holiday homes down here. It’s nice and quiet, just how my wife wants it.

 

Once again, I’d like to thank you for the amazing quilt. You have done an amazing job and the whole Aussie hero quilt organisation does great things for the ADF family as a whole.

My son has already stolen the quilt and has been using it to keep warm as it’s gotten colder down here. So I think I’ve lost it! Haha.

 

Best wishes to you and your family. Keep warm this winter, it’s starting to get cold

Dear Jan-Maree B and Aussie Hero Quilts

 

It is with a happy heart I thank you for your letter and beautiful quilt (made by Lynn F using blocks made by Dorothy C, Quilted by Philomena and embroidery by Kerri B) we recently received honouring our wonderful mother. 

 

Certainly there are many words and sentiments that could be used to describe how we feel – we are amazed and humbled with the tribute. From our family we thank you for your time and wishes, for something to treasure and remember.  A truly wonderful initiative by all involved.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Good morning Su J,

 

It is with great pleasure that I send this email. I have just picked up the post from the base and unwrapped it as soon as I could. I am beyond blown away by how this has turned out and it is very obvious the effort you went to, to make it special for me.

 

A little about me, I joined the RAN in 2016 from Tasmania. I have been serving as a Combat Systems Operator since then. I specialise in aircraft control, so when I am posted to the ship I am the voice and controller of the air assets we have assigned to us. This includes our helicopters and our RAAF P-8A as well as others. I have loved every minute of this job, the highlight has been being a part of the Commissioning crew of HMAS Brisbane (DDG 41). We then spent 6 months off the coast of the USA conducting trials. This allowed me to travel the USA. Another was the deployment you sent me this quilt for. I have made life long friends and wouldn’t trade any of it. I have been posted to ex HMAS Darwin, HMAS Brisbane and HMAS Hobart. I have spent the past six years with a ship and now I am in the role of instructing the new aircraft controllers.

 

The reason for the sharks, 4X and the Labrador specific requests:

 

The highlight of the deployment was having the opportunity to swim with 15 + whale sharks in a town called Oslob off the coast of Cebu, Philippines. Hence, the sharks. I have also had a huge love for the ocean.

The reason for the 4X – great times are had during at the end of deployments when you are surrounded by the people you just spent 6 months with non stop, you laugh (cry a little) as you sip on your favourite drink. Mine, is 4X.

I have a three year old chocolate Labrador named ‘Zeus’. You can guess how much I missed him and how much he missed me when I was away. Having this on the quilt will now allow me to look, and remember the joy he has bought into my life.

 

Thank you so so much for this amazing gift.

Thank you again,

 

Kind regards,

 

If anyone is in the Young area over the next weekend (27th-28th), please pop in to their annual quilt show organised by the local Lions Club. 
There will be a tribute to the service men and woman on show!!!!

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

Tuesday’s would be so totally boring without them!
💟💟💟💟💟💟💟

 

 

 

 

 

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