Happy Tuesday Friends!
We have a lovely lot of messages and photos so grab a cuppa or cool drink, sit back and relax while you soak up some well-deserved gratitude!
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Hi Sue N,
I cannot express how grateful I am for my beautiful Invictus inspired quilt, I absolutely love it!It arrived at the most perfect time as I’ve had a tough few weeks supporting an Investigation Report so coming home to this kind and generous gift was heart-warming.I also loved your thoughtful card and goodies, thank you again.I’m deploying in September and will definitely take my quilt with me, and everywhere I go.Thanks again
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Hello Beverly U and Jan-Maree,
Thank you for the quilt. I received it in the mail this last week. I would normally send you a letter in reply but our mail to Australia is slow and sometimes unreliable so please forgive me for emailing instead.
I appreciate the work you do making the quilts and laundry bags and I know it means a lot to everyone who receives them. Receiving a gift such as this is difficult to describe, it is a degree of kindness that we do not take for granted. I have a small house here in the Sinai and I’ll put it in a spot on display, but also where it won’t gather too much dust until I go home sometime in mid-2026.
Thank you for what you do.
Best regards
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Good day Ruth S and company.
I hope this finds you well.
I want to pass on heartfelt thanks for your efforts in the creation of my laundry bag, presented to me at the Invictus Games.
It is especially meaningful to me now because this week I submitted paperwork to leave the ADF completely at the end of this financial year, after moving into the Reserve space in 2021 following 30 years’ of military service.
The Games were a wonderful way to crown my career, which has seen deployments on submarines in the Barents Sea and North Atlantic in the 80s, frigates in the 90s, amphibious ships in the 00s and Afghanistan (liaison for the team reconstructing the Afghan health system) after commissioning from the ranks in the 2010s.
To leave as a Lieutenant Commander is something very different to what 18 year old me (looked more like 12 year old me) envisaged, and is actually pretty splendid. To be able to transfer my trade to the Australian Navy was a dream come true and though my work here was mainly desk-bound, my work with disabled veterans in the Parabiathlon space (cross-country skiing and shooting) has opened up new purpose for me.
I will continue my voluntary veterans’ parabiathlon organisation (which led to my employment as the Nordic Skiing lead for the Games), and continue to support an elite parabiathlete toward the 2026 Winter Paralympics but have also just agreed to take a 3 days a week job entailing identifying, supporting and reporting on older homeless veterans.
The importance of purpose in life is huge, but so is tribe; and the work you do gives such a warm affiliation to deployed service personnel and means a lot to us.
Very many thanks indeed and all the very best with your future efforts.
PS. Please tip my hat to your cousin’s daughter. I hope she and her career are thriving.
Very best regards and highest esteem
Hi AHQ (Gayle W),
Dear Bev F,I had the absolute pleasure of delivering my son-in-law’s quilt to him on Saturday evening. To say he was delighted is an understatement!He & our daughter have just purchased their own place. I imagine next time we visit there will be his & her quilts, she’s Navy too, on display. You’ve done an amazing job. I’m hoping to get back into making some Laundry Bags very soon.Regards,
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Hi Ruth S,
I recently received the laundry bag you made. This is my first time overseas and I can’t tell you how much it means to be thought of while being away from family and friends, it truly is something special what you all do for serving members.
This experience has been a highlight throughout my career, and now I have a perfect keepsake that I will forever cherish.
Thank you for the work you are doing, and the thought and care goes into each piece you make.
Sincerely,
A current recipient has sent a picture of the laundry bag he has had for a while now.
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