I am currently serving onboard HMAS TOOWOOMBA in the Arabian Gulf.
I am the proud and very privileged recipient of the quilt and laundry bag set you sent. Please excuse my late response; I did receive the set some time ago now but have been extremely busy with my roles and responsibilities onboard that this email has been put on the back-burner.
I have been away from home for just under 5 months now and your package now brings me a homely touch to my rack that I had been missing. Again, I thank you for your quilt and laundry bag care package and look forward to hopefully hearing back from you and continuing correspondence.
If you are a Mum, (if only to the 2 Schipperke dogs) I wish you a very happy Mothers Day.
Take care
One of Angela’s recipients from South Sudan recently had the chance to view the blog and sent me the following message –
Got a chance to view your website and really enjoyed looking at the pics of the other quilts and laundry bags. I’d be very pleased to support your website and be honoured if you’d like to post the pics of my quilt and laundry bag ‘Roo’ (I’ve attached them again for you).
G’day Joan and Rob,
The laundry bag arrived yesterday, and it sure will brighten my surroundings! It actually beat me here, and was a great surprise on arrival in Juba (Capital of South Sudan).
One of the guys here does enjoy sailing, so I have passed the magazine on to him as he is a Navy guy, and a long way from the ocean here in the middle of Africa.
It is great to hear from people at home, and to know that people are apppreciative of the work we do and the time we spend away from our families.
Thank you again,
Hi Cheryl,
I’ve passed on your details to a few other people over here as well.
Kind Regards,
This is a brief note to express my appreciation for the quilt you and Jill, along with your other team members supplied to me.
It was a lovely surprise to receive the quilt, and you are correct the Ad Astra Per Ardua motif is inspiring!
I have attached a photograph of the quilt in use on my bed!
Once again thank you for your time and effort in producing these quilts, and for your ongoing support of deployed defence members. It means a lot to us to know we are thought of so highly by the people back home.
Kind regards and best wishes
The material the fellow refers to is Toy Soldier Fabric! LOL
Just a short email to thank-you for the laundry bags and treats you sent us recently.
Its the support back home from people and organisations such as yourself and Aussie Hero Quilts which make our deployment here so much more bearable.
Once again, thank-you for your letter, the laundry bags and treats, on behalf of the Airmen of Multi-National Base Command – Tarin Kot, thanks once again for your generous donation.
Kind Regards, Dear Evelyn and Kerryn,
We would like to extend a very sincere thank you (I have previously sent you an e-mail Evelyn, this one has the photos as promised!) for the marvellous quilts that you have sent to us here in Afghanistan.
The photo depicts the aircraft that we remotely fly over here on missions over Afghanistan.
We are both very appreciative of the very talented work that you have given us. It truly gives us both a kind reminder that there are still genuinely honest kind people in this world that would do something for complete strangers.
Kerryn, as your first person, I can honestly say you have done an outstanding job, I love the design on the washing bag especially!
Kindest regards,
Dear Ang,
Thank you so much for your lovely laundry bag. The choice of fabric is inspired and the embroidery is brilliant! Clearly a lot of thought and work went into its construction. You may not be aware but we are supplied laundry bags here, but they are all the same colour and shape, so finding your laundry can be quite a time-consuming exercise. To have a laundry bag that looks different is truly useful!
Unfortunately your bag arrived towards the end of my deployment, but fortunately the incoming senior chaplain has just arrived and he will be more than able to put it to excellent use. I have attached a photograph of him holding it outside our headquarters building.
Once again thank you so much for your support to the deployed defence force members and for your excellent sewing.
And just in case you are wondering, the reason Angela’s laundry bag arrived so late in this fellow’s deployment is that his quilt and laundry bag were requested for him by a friend late in his deployment. The reality is that, given this fellow’s rank, he is not likely to need a laundry bag once he has gone home, so passing it on was a great idea.
And from the new recipient, who also happens to be a RAAFie, hence the appropriateness of the RAAF roundel…
The laundry bag is so beautiful . . and the thoughts behind it even more so. I will treasure both throughout the deployment, and beyond. I almost (but not quite!) don’t want to use it, but certainly will as it is a practical expression of support . . and will advertise AHQ no doubt!
This thank you is for Angela and for Caroline. Caroline made and quilted the quilt and Angela was kind enough to bind it and send it off. Lots of our quilts are team efforts and it works.
🙂
My son has received the laundry bag and quilt and is thrilled. He asked me to pass on his thanks and appreciation. He is looking forward to using the quilt in the winter time in Adelaide, when he returns in the next couple of months.
Morning Stephanie, I have just returned from leave and received my new Flash Laundry Bag with my initials and a whole heap of eyes looking at me, I Love it. reminds me of waking up at home and my three youngest are at the side of the bed, innocent faces like they have been standing there for ages and its only six am staring and “What are we doing today Dad?!” on their faces. thank you very much for going out of your way and making a difference for us here.
All the very best and Thank you again,
And from the same fellow for his quilt…
Dear Jan-Maree, I have received my Quilt Cover today and cannot believe the effort you and your ladies have gone to in making it a special “Me” Doona cover. Unfortunately the Major with the Leprechaun voice and young XXXX are on their well earned leave at present so they were not here to see the opening of my box. I received my Laundry bag on my return from leave a couple of weeks ago and Loved the googly eyes which Stephanie tells me will glow in the dark if I prep them.
Being a Dad of four boys ranging 15,10,8 and 6 I know they will be battling for my laundry bag.
Can I say a big special Thank you for all the efforts of Stephanie, Carol, the other Aussie Hero Friend designers and in particular yourself for making this happen. When we take our washing to the Laundry, I always look around and see the other designs that are presented and smile, and we say “Aussie Heroes?’ and get a “Yes” back. Know that the 1300 plus quilts and 2100 laundry bags are very well used and trust me, they don’t get passed to the incoming groups, they go home with the soldiers as another memento to look back on with fond memories of time served. I know I will be keeping mine (or should I say sharing mine with my boys). Thank you very much All the best to you and your Aussie Heroes,
Dear Carol,
I would like to say a big thank you for the lovely quilt, laundry bag, and all of the other lovely goodies you sent me, they were much appreciated. I absolutely love my quilt with the gorgeous little fox on it and it is something I will be able hand down to my children in years to come. As soon as I received my quilt I sent a photo to my mum to show her how lovely it is.
Till next time………………………keep spreading the word and happy stitching..
I ALWAYS love to read the messages from our Heroes and see them with their quilt/laundry bags,and where they live. But I especially loved the photo of the group laying on the ground showing us their quilts. I also appreciated how the guy with the laundry bag joined in too, even though he obviously does not have a quilt….yet…. This photos really got to me. (have summit in my eye) Love being a part of this group.
I'm with Carol above – love those photos and the group on the ground with quilts and one laundry bag … that sand is blowing in again. What wonderful letters and photos – all of them.
These thank yous and photos are awesome. Keep the photos coming guys and gals they are fantastic.
Love the group shot.