Grati-Tuesday 25th April 2023

Written by AHQ

25 April 2023

Happy Tuesday Friends!

Happy ANZAC Day!
LEST WE FORGET
 
Grab a cuppa, sit back and enjoy some well deserved gratitude!
 

G’day Amy K and Jan-Maree B,

Amy, thank you so much for making such a magnificent quilt for my father! He was very moved by it, and appreciated it deeply. 
I presented it to him over the long weekend, when my family all came to visit.
Jan-Maree, thanks again for organising everything and all the great work you have done over the years, including my own laundry bag 🙂
Thanks again

L-R. Recipients son who organised the quilt and Recipient

 

Hi Mrs Turner, 
 
Thank you for making the laundry bag for myself and other members like myself. We are all very grateful for the amazing bag that you made for us. 
(this recipient received one of the random LBs we send out. 
Unfortunately they did not include the first name)

Hi Toni F,
I just wanted to say thank you for the awesome laundry bag you made for me as part of Aussie Hero Quilt program.
I love the personal touches on the bag such as the aircraft silhouettes, poppies and the Magpie that is my current squadron mascot. 
To tell you a bit about me, I joined the Air Force as a 16-year-old in 1990 and I have enjoyed many postings all over Australia and the USA. I have worked on multiple aircraft including the AP-3C Orion, C-130 Hercules and my current position as the Senior Enlisted Maintenance Manager on the F-35A Lightning II at 75SQN RAAF Base Tindal, NT. I have Deployed to the Middle East on multiple occasions and been to many international destinations, but I always love coming home to Australia. 
Cheers 

 

G’day Anne H

 

I am currently serving on OP MAZURKA in the Sinai Peninsula. I received the laundry bag today that you made for me and I am just writing to say thank you very much. It is absolutely lovely and I am very happy with it. You are right when you say that RAEME soldiers are very loyal to our colours. Back home I am posted to the 3rd Brigade in Townsville, I have two young children aged 6 and 9.

 

Thanks again.

 

Kind regards,

 

Dear Cath H,
 
Firstly, a massive thank you for the beautiful one of a kind quilt you so thoughtfully made for me! I really appreciate it and its arrival certainly did bring tears to my eyes.
 
A little about me. I grew up in country Victoria and joined the RAAF at age 19. Been in 21years now!  Originally I joined as a Clerk and I loved the varied SQNs I was employed at. In 2003 I was deployed to Baghdad International Airport in an Ops role. I reflect back on this time as the most exciting and scary time of my life. One that I cherish as it of course helped me be who I am today. It was a time where my faith was stretched in new and amazing ways and I also saw God’s hand so clearly on my life.
 
I spent 10 years as a Clerk before receiving a scholarship to train for Chaplaincy in the ADF. Just after I commenced training I met my husband. He was living in Sydney at the time and I was in
Kyneton… so lots of phone calls, skype and hours driving! In June 2015 we married and since then have had 4 children! We are truly blessed.
After I completed Officer training I received my first posting as a RAAF Chaplain to RAAF Base Wagga. We loved our time there! 2 of our children were born in Wagga. It was busy with Bushfires
and then Covid, however I had such a great team to work with it made it such a great season of our lives. We even bought a house there so you never know! We may go back.
 
I am currently posted to RAAF Williamtown and only just returned to work last week! With 4 young children I have reduced my work hours a bit to be able to do the school bus and daycare drops offs.
My childre are 6, 5, 2 and 1! My husband is an Electrician and HVAC Technician… and part time wanna be muso! Loves his drums and guitars. We can be a noisy household at times!
 
I have plans to hang my quilt in my office so all can see its beautiful handiwork…. Plus it will brighten up my dreary office.
 
In Wagga I did a little reno to make the Chaplaincy Centre more inviting. Hopefully I can do similar here.
 
Thank you for the Bible Verses too. They are very relevant to my life!!! I am so happy God knows the plans for my life as right now as we certainly have some big decisions coming up! Nothing crazy…
just semi mid life crisis… where do we want to live, which school to send kids to etc etc!

 

G’day Wendy B,

 

Just wanted to reach out and say a very big thank you for the laundry bag you made me! It is exactly what I pictured when I asked for the Light Horse/ANZAC Day theme. I am sharing accommodation with Kiwis and Canadians here so it’s good to rep some more Aussie kit around the place. We genuinely appreciate your work, it gives us something to brag about and to be proud of as a lot of other countries here don’t get the level of support we do from back home.

 

Thank you for sharing a bit about yourself and the photo of Pinot!

 

A little bit about me: I grew up in NSW and since a very young age wanted to join the Army, which I ended up doing right out of school. I am an Armoured Corps Officer by trade, and spent my early career in Canberra and Townsville, before moving to Sydney where I am currently posted and will remain until the end of 2025 (pending any changes). I have had some pretty incredible opportunities during my career which have included overseas training teams in PNG, domestic response to the Townsville floods, a near region deployment and now being deployed to the Sinai peninsula currently. The Aussies here are part of the Multinational Force and Observers which is responsible for maintaining the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt. A job which has its frustrations, but is rewarding. We are working alongside 12 other countries here in the Force including the US, the UK, NZ, Canada, Fiji, Colombia, Czech Republic, Italy, Japan, Norway, Uruguay and France. Whilst we are a small component of the Force (27 people) we have people spread across the entire organisation of about 1800.  

 

I have a partner, who has recently joined the Air Force, and a dog who we rescued in Townsville. My partner is also away at the moment which means the dog is running amuck at my parents place, and loving every second of it.

 

Thank you for the snakes and the key rings, those things go along way here!

 

Once again thank you for everything you do, it makes a big difference a definitely brightens the place up and makes it feel a little closer to home. Take care.

 

Regards,

Good Morning Shirley D
I am in the Australian Army and a part of the Australian Contingent deployed on OP MAZURKA in Egypt. My role here as part of the Multinational Force and Observer (MFO) Team is watchkeeper in the Force Operation Centre. I mainly conduct 12hr Shift work and complete Shifts either by Day or Night when required.
My role in the Australian Army is a Rifleman in The Royal Australian Infantry Corp. My home unit back in Australia is the 5th Battalion/ Royal Australian Regiment, based in Darwin, Northern Territory. 1 have spent most of my time posted to the 5th Battalion/from my early days as a Private Soldier through to being
promoted to Sergeant. I have been in the Australian Army for 10 years now and this is my second deployment after my first deployment being to IRAQ in 2016-17.
My fiancé and children are currently living in country NSW. As you imagine I’m pretty keen to get home to enjoy a bit of downtime and play with the Kids. I’m a pretty keen Essendon supporter having grown up in country Victoria/ where on the weekends were mostly consumed down at the local sporting clubs/ being either the footy or cricket club/ depending on what season we were in. 
I can’t wait to watch my kids continue to play sport and I’m really keen for my son to play sport when he gets a bit older.
This message is to show you my absolute admiration and appreciation for the Laundry Bag that you have created for me whilst 1 am currently deployed. It will give me some long and lasting memories of this deployment and my time here in Egypt.
Thank you so much for not just the Laundry Bag but for everything you and your family have done to this point in your life’s and what you’re continuing to do, to contribute to the men and women that serve our Country. I have provided a photo of the laundry bag below to show you that I have received it and I can telly you its has already done its job to a very good standard.
Thank you again.
 

 

Good Morning Beverley F
 
(The part of this letter in italics is the same as the above message as it 
was sent by the same recipient)
I am in the Australian Army and a part of the Australian Contingent deployed on OP MAZURKA in Egypt. My role here as part of the Multinational Force and Observer (MFO) Team is watchkeeper in the Force Operation Centre. I mainly conduct 12hr Shift work and complete Shifts either by Day or Night when required.
 
My role in the Australian Army is a Rifleman in The Royal Australian Infantry Corp. My home unit back in Australia is the 5th Battalion/ Royal Australian Regiment, based in Darwin, Northern Territory. 1 have spent most of my time posted to the 5th Battalion/from my early days as a Private Soldier through to being
promoted to Sergeant. I have been in the Australian Army for 10 years now and this is my second deployment after my first deployment being to IRAQ in 2016-17.
 
My fiancé and children are currently living in country NSW. As you imagine I’m pretty keen to get home to enjoy a bit of downtime and play with the Kids. I’m a pretty keen Essendon supporter having grown up in country Victoria/ where on the weekends were mostly consumed down at the local sporting clubs/ being either the footy or cricket club/ depending on what season we were in. 
I can’t wait to watch my kids continue to play sport and I’m really keen for my son to play sport when he gets a bit older.
This message is to show you my absolute admiration and appreciation for the Quilt that you have created for me whilst I am currently deployed. It will give me some long and lasting memories of this deployment and my time here in Egypt. It means when I take the quilt back home, I will be able to pass it on to my son as a gift and watch him enjoy it as he grows up and hopefully, he becomes an Essendon supporter.
Thank you so much for not just the quilt but for everything you have done to this point in your life and what you’re continuing to do, to contribute to the men and women that serve our Country. I have provided a photo of the quilt below to show you that I have recieved it and its currently on the end of my bed. 
Thank you again.
 

G’day Jenny D,

 

I am currently serving on OP MAZURKA in the Sinai Peninsula. I received the quilt today that you made for me and I am just writing to say thank you very much. It is  absolutely lovely and I am very happy with it. RAEME soldiers are very loyal to our colours, but I also really love the tomatoes.

 

Thanks again.

 

Kind regards,

 

Good morning Lynn F (and Arthur).

 

Just a quick email to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the work you did in creating my ratcatcher/babycatcher quilt.

 

I have been more emotionally affected than I ever expected. It really feels like you have acknowledged the themes of my career of which I am most proud and yet least recognized.

 

It was a lovely small presentation ceremony at work – which was organised without my knowledge, making it much more special.

 

 It’s just beautiful and I know how much work is involved in quilting that I haven’t even ventured into that style of textiles (I have gotten heavily into crochet during Covid, but otherwise I’m just a sewing fixer rather than creator).

 

Thanks again.

 

 

 

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

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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