Anzac day 2021

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Received theses 16 pens from Dave Edwards from Cessnock Woodturners, thank you Dave much appreciated your continued support. We now have in hand 136 pens for ANZAC DAY 2021. We have set a target of 1500

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40 beautiful pens from Russell Ball have just arrived. Many thanks, Russell and Slade Timber, well done.

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Just received from Jim Saddington. Many thanks Jim for your beautiful pens they are much appreciated

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Just received these beauties from Russell Ball. Many thanks, Russell much appreciated

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Update for Pens for the Troops. I would like all finished pens to be here no later than the 10th March, please. My address has not changed please PM if you want it. Many thanks in advance

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Just Received these wonderful pens from Bob Kettle and Grumpy Grandpa’s. Many thanks Bob a great effort all round

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[Old Croc]

Hi Sam, I just discovered this thread, I haven't looked at pen turning in forever. Whilst I can't use any machinery at present, I have a lot of nice timber pen blanks that I can give someone if it helps. They will be free and I will post them. You decide how to progress this.
Rgds,
Crocy.

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38 beautiful pens that have been received from BG Thompson and Norm Hyde. Thank you so much for your continued support, its much appreciated

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Wow! Many thanks to Peter Casey and his students at Murrimbidgee High for these magnificent pens. Congratulations to you all

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90 beautiful pens arrived at my BIL’s place this morning from John Ford and Bayside Woodturners and Woodcrafter in Queensland. Many thanks to all involved a wonderful donation to this worthy cause. I have show just tree pens as I did not wish to destroy the package

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The full set of pens that Bayside Woodturners and Woodcrafters donated to ANZAC DAY. Many thanks to John Ford for the photo

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Twenty beautiful pens arrived today From Darren Reid. Darren said Stephen just supplied the spectra ply blanks and Peter Lucas the Cards. Darren supplied the pen kits and did the turning/ Well done group effort.

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Letter of thanks from the ME

Good morning Bob,

I would like to take the opportunity to say a big thank you for your beautifully carved timber pen! I just arrived in theatre earlier this week and was presented with it as part of my welcome.

It means a lot to have something from home that is personal and hand crafted, and I absolutely appreciate your effort. It’s these little things that make our job that much easier when we can see the support we have from people such as yourself back home.

Please know your pen shall be used during the hot days and long nights up here in support of our Air Operations moving troops around the various locations in the Middle East.

Thank you again for your kind gift and support Bob https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v9/t4c/1/16/1f642.png

Kind regards,
FLTLT Tom

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Just received 10 pens from Bob White and 25 pens from Dave Edwards of Cessnock Woodturners. Thank you Bob and Dave much appreciated thank you. This brings the running tally to 1009 pens. Well done to all concerned a great effort

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Another large box of pens on its way to the troops

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Final pens are on their way to the troops. Total is 1009. Congratulations to all that took part great achievement.

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Nick Ellis made this for a soldier that never got one whilst deployed. Well done Nick

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I have received this email back from the South Sudan. Congratulations to all involved.

Dear Bruce,

My name is Peter xxx and I took over from xxx as the RSM on Op ASLAN in South Sudan.

It’s taken a while for me to distribute all the pens however all new arriving members who have joined the team in South Sudan have now been given a pen.

I would like to thank you and all the great people who made the pens that our members have received. The craftsmanship of the pens are outstanding, very high quality and everyone who has received a pen has been very impressed. I hope that some of the Australian contingent members have written to the members who made the pens to say thanks.

Personally, thank you very much for what you do for our deployed men and women, its an amazing feeling knowing that we have great Australians like yourself supporting our members who are deployed doing some great things across the globe.

I hope this email has found you in good health and thank you so much for your support.

All the best.

Peter

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Dear Sir,

Please accept this short message to deliver my extreme appreciation to yourself and your members for sending the soldiers on OPERATION ASLAN – United Nations Mission to South Sudan the beautiful pens. The pens have been warmly received by all the Australian soldiers here in the country.

I was very interested in the pen that was made from Huon Pine by Mr. Guy Hartley. I grew up on the Huon River in the Huon Valley - Tasmania and I remember strolling the beaches, searching for Huon Pine with my father who favoured wood turning as a hobby. This particular pen bought back fond memories and I thank you.

The Australian Contingent has just completed a partial changeover of staff and I was fortunate to have received the pens just in time to share them with the outgoing members prior to them leaving, and the incoming members. The pens are beautifully made, displaying the unique skill that the members possess!!

On behalf of the soldiers of OPERATION ASLAN – United Nations to South Sudan, my sincere appreciation to you all and thank you for the beautiful pens and for thinking of us.

I request that you please pass this message on to all of your members.

Take care, stay safe and kind regards

Gill

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A thank you to Jim Wilcox, well done Jim.
Hello,
I am Aaliyah and I am emailing you all to thank you for sending us these pens!
My pen was made by Jim Willox - it is beautiful, I’ll treasure it.
Many thanks.
Aaliyah

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Hi Bob

By way of introduction, my name is Catherine and I am currently deployed to the Middle East region for six months as a public servant with the Department of Defence.

I wanted to pass my sincere gratitude on for the beautiful pen that you have made, it will be a pen that I utilise while I am here, but also treasure when I return home.

The work that the Grumpy Grandpas do in support of deployed personnel is really incredible, and I would like to say thank you for taking the time. And I love the name of your club!

Warm regards

Catherine

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An email I have just received from Egypt. Congratulations to all that took part a job well done.

Dear Bruce,

My name is Luke XXXX, I am the Regimental Sergeant Major for the Australian Contingent as part of the Multinational Force Observers in Sinai, Egypt. Most recently, I am also the recipient of your shipment of handcrafted pens which has made the long journey from Australia to Egypt.



The current Australian Contingent comprises of 27 members from Navy, Army and Air Force. We all left home in January and we are now about half-way through our tour. As you might imagine, the COVID-19 situation outside Australia is quite challenging but our men and woman continue to work hard and keep safe.



Fortunately, our tight restrictions lifted enough to conduct a small ANZAC Day Dawn Service this year, so I have included a picture of the service for you. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity for our team, especially for those who had never experienced an ANZAC Day whilst deployed overseas. It was made even more special by also being able to share the occasion with our New Zealand brothers and sisters.



I can report that your delivery of pens made the journey safely and in one piece. The outstanding efforts from all those involved in your community are amazing and greatly appreciated. We have had some difficulty getting mail and supplies into the country, so it was wonderful to receive the delivery. The generosity and dedication of ‘Pens for the Troops’ in making those who are deployed feel supported is a credit to you and all the team that donate their time to make us feel appreciated.



Thank you for your dedication and support, know that your efforts mean a lot to the men and woman who are away from their homes and families.



Kind regards,



Luke

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Another email of thanks received

Good evening mate,

Thank you for the pen Kevin, much appreciated!

Ryan G

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An email of gratitude received onite
G’day Bruce and Dave,
Tonight I received a pen whilst on parade at my Army Reserve Depot. I would like to thank you for thinking of and providing for the troops with this generous gesture. It represents time, care, thought, and reflection. We do not seek out recognition, but it is always greatly appreciated.
Kind Regards,
Laurence

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An email of thanks recived by Mik Lawrence. Well done Mik.
Good morning Mik,
I was just gifted one of your amazing pens by my RSM for my involvement in ANZAC Day ceremonial activities.
I would just like to express my thanks to you for gifting these pens to our unit (5/6 RVR), it will take pride of place on my desk at work.
Kind Regards,
Craig

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Dear Peter,

I am writing whilst on my deployment in the Middle East to Thankyou for your amazing Handmade Maple Pen. I love the dark colouring of the wood and how smooth it feels in my hand, I also saw all the other wonderful pens you have made and can see all the hard work that is put into making them for us.
Thankyou once again, it it such a beautiful keepsake to have in memory of my time over here.

Kind regards,

CPL Kelly
Dental Assistant
Australian Army

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Another email of appreciation, this one for Guy Hartley

Good afternoon,

I just wanted to say thank you for the pens you sent through to us - they have been a hot commodity amongst my colleagues.

I was lucky to receive a beautiful red cedar streamline pen made by Guy Hartley, and I would like to extend a thank you to him.

We appreciate your efforts, and are humbled that you are thinking of us.

Regards,

Jeremy

Australian Army

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Good afternoon,

My name is Jillie xxx and I would just like to pass on my thanks and appreciation for the beautifully crafted pens from Mr Bob Kettle and Mr Phil Murray.

It is people like you that make serving all the more meaningful and personally, as an officer you can never have too many nice pens to compliment your stationery set so the pens I was gifted will go perfectly!

Again thank you for your service to all of the troops abroad with your craftsmanship and thoughtfulness in sending such timeless gifts.

Best wishes and kind regards,

Jillie

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Good Evening Russell,

My name is Mason, I’m a Private from the 9th Battalion Royal Queensland Regiment and I’ve been lucky enough to receive one of your pens.
I am very impressed with the quality and will definitely put it to good use.

Thank you for your ongoing support!

Kind Regards,


PTE Mason

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Email received by Bob Kettle. well done Bob.
Good morning from the Middle East, Bob and the Grumpy Grandpa’s,
I just wanted to email to sincerely thank you for my lovely rock maple pen that I recently received.
The job I do over here is working down the back in the cargo compartment of the C130J Hercules as a Loadmaster. The pen has been put to very good use already with the array of paperwork that I need to do with our loads. It has already flown with me into multiple Afghanistan and Iraq locations. Please see the attached photos of it tucked into my Uniform – it co-coordinates very well with our tan flying suits!
Thank you very much again for your very practical gift!
Can you please tell me where I will be able to get a refill of the ink when it has run out?
Have a great day.
Regards,
Sam

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Dear Jim, this morning the 2nd Division RSM presented me with a pen that you turned from some Tasmanian Blackwood. It is very fine work. Thank you for the effort and care it so obviously took to create.
I imagine you are wondering why an RSM is presenting a pen to an Admiral. Well, the Joint Task Force I am commanding shares a headquarters, and most of its staff, with the Army 2nd Division. We are responsible for the ADF support to the States and Territories for their response to the pandemic. We have about xxx people spread around the country, commanded by the local 2nd Division Brigade Commanders. Navy and Air Force people are involved as well, but the Headquarters are mainly Army. In the past couple of weeks we have also been providing the ADF people to support the flood recovery in NSW.
I’m probably having more fun than is legal! I get to work with all the different coloured uniforms, as well as a large number of Reserve personnel, and they bring wide set of skills to the fight. The Navy, Army and Air Force certainly all have different cultures and perspectives, but we all value the same things. When we work together we are able to achieve great things.
Jim, I don’t know what your Service journey was, but I too would like to thank you for your service. Thank you also for what you are doing now with Pens for the Troops. It is an important contribution to veterans’ well-being. We need to feel connected to each other, because it’s that connection with our comrades and those who have served before us that gives meaning to many of the things we are asked to do.
I hope you are well. As we say in the Navy, I wish you fair winds and a following sea.
With respect
Bob
Rear Admiral

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Another one for Jim Saddington
Good morning Jim,
I just wanted to drop you a short note to say thank you for the beautiful elm pen that you made and that I am now the proud owner of.
It has pride of place on my desk at work, and I very much enjoy writing and signing various documents and briefs with it. It also gets much use when I pen a letter home to family. There are still very good reasons for the modern military to have a good pen in-hand, despite the convenience of modern technology, and there is also nothing better than receiving a hand-written letter !
Thank you for thinking of us who are deployed away from our families and loved ones at this time. Your kind gift means a lot, and the pen will be put to very good use.
Kind regards,
Liza

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Dear Jim,

Just a quick note to say that’s for the pen. I have been fortunate to have been gifted a Tasmanian Tallowwood pen that you turned.

I note on the card that you are a Vietnam Veteran, so from one veteran (East Timor, Iraq, Afghanistan) to another, thank you for your service.

Regards

Mark