They may not be letters from the front lines, but handmade cards from soldiers can make a world of difference to families back home.

A local craft group – Simply Creative Craft Group – have crafted cards to send to our men and women overseas.

Group member Sam Raymond says they started with small goals and have far surpassed their original expectations.

'Originally I wanted to make 100 cards, but I got poo-pooed by the group who said they wanted to do 200.

'We've probably made enough kits to make 150 cards, and we've just kept churning them out from there, so to get 600 is amazing.”

Yes, 600 cards and 600 notes from our service men and women, along with 600 stamped envelopes, with heartfelt messages and handmade cards inside, going to 600 families, daughters, sons, girlfriends, mothers, grandmothers, husbands, wives and everyone in between.

But it hasn't been an easy effort – Sam says their first session was exhausting, but worth it.

'We started at 10am and we stopped at 1.30pm. I was shattered.

'We were chain-ganging them through; we were just putting them together and passing them to the end of the table. Then people were putting envelopes with them and putting them in cellophane bags ready to go in the big shipping box.”

It's an effort that Sam can get behind, a sentiment that Sam feels will make a difference.

'I was in the naval reserves for seven years so I suppose it's a cause that is close to my heart. I've got parents and grandparents that have been in the military and so do others in the group.”

And it was an opportunity to remember. A memorial table was set up for people to reflect on, to chat about and to share personal stories.

'We asked if anyone had any memorabilia to put on a display table. I wore my service medal and there were a few people that brought in ration books,” says Sam.

'We had a military tool box, a uniform and a lady from South Africa brought in a medal from her parents.”

The group meets every Thursday at the Arataki Hall to work on projects that will benefit the community, and the cards for soldiers is just the beginning.

'When they go to their shop, they don't have to buy the card, they pick one to send back to their families. Apparently they just love homemade cards. There's nothing worse than being away from family for anniversaries or baby's birthdays or something like that,” says group member Kay Corin.

'Homemade cards make it more personal.”