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Ordinary People. Extraordinary Efforts. November/December 2015
Our Promise – Page 2 Real Life Stories – Page 20 Fundraising Stories – Page 8 Welcome to Heroes Magazine
Together, Rebuilding Lives
Welcome to the Christmas edition of Heroes magazine. I hope you will take the time to read about some of the work we do to help rebuild shattered lives with your wonderful support. Recovery from life-changing mental and physical injuries takes time and is complex. Our work does not finish when fighting ends. Our Recovery Centres are the front line of our support to those who need us today and long after they have served. We are seeing less physical injuries, but more hidden wounds so our support must continue. You are a vital part of this team that helps rebuild lives. You are as important as our psychologists, remedial instructors, art teachers, woodwork instructors, volunteers and all our wonderful staff. Without you and the inspiring things you do to raise funds, there would be no Help for Heroes; it’s as simple as that. Together we are doing great work, together we are helping to rebuild lives. In this magazine you will read some of the stories of those who raise the vital funds as well as the stories of those who inspire us to do so. Thank you so much for your continued support; we could not do this without you. Have a wonderful Christmas, thank you for everything you continue to do and let’s all look forward to a peaceful New Year. Onwards and Upwards
Bryn and Emma Parry Co-Founders, Help for Heroes
Production Team: Contact Editor: Ela Le Galloudec Help for Heroes, Unit 14, Downton Business Centre, Downton, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP5 3RB Editorial Assistant: Ed Dixon Graphic Design: Sarah Duncan, Simon Maher Data Protection Photography: Roger Keller, Chris Radburn, Press Association, Rex Photography, Johnny Fenn If you no longer wish to receive our magazine, please email [email protected] Cover Photo: Charlie Clift or call 01725 513212
www.helpforheroes.org.uk cricketing
Contents
Contents
Our Promise 2 08 We’re here for ‘the blokes’ for life Team H4H 7 Find out who makes up Team H4H
Fundr aising Stories 8 You’ve done your bit with pride in 2015
Hero Ride 2015 14 Read the story of Hero Ride
Cricket for Heroes 18 Thousands gathered for a spectacular day of Cricket
Real Life stories 20 Our Heroes’ inspirational stories
News in Brief 24 What’s coming up in 2016
The Last Post 25 Jodie Kidd writes about taking part in three H4H challenges
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“It was the first time that anyone had really sat me down and listened to what I had to say. Back then I believed that Help for Heroes saved my life. Now I believe that they gave me the tools I needed to save myself.” Mark Taylor, H4H beneficiary
www.helpforheroes.org.uk 1 Our Promise
The Battle Continues
In 2007, when Help for Heroes In our early days the most We also proudly work in was conceived, there were urgent need was to help our partnership with over 70 hundreds of young men and battlefield wounded. But it’s specialist organisations to women being killed, and not just those with missing provide direct, practical thousands more wounded, limbs that need us. We have support at every stage whilst serving our country. seen an increasingly diverse of recovery. Help for Heroes said: “we mix of people seeking support Over the past eight years just want to help” and the – brave men and woman you have helped us transform British public were with living with the physical and many lives. However, there us wholeheartedly. psychological scars of conflict are still so many people we from Afghanistan, Iraq, the Fast-forward eight years need to help and so much Falklands, Bosnia, Northern and the landscape may have more we need to do. Please Ireland and even as far back changed but we are still don’t stop now as together, as WW2. needed; perhaps more now we are rebuilding the lives than ever. We have promised We take our job very seriously of those who have given to stand alongside ‘the and understand recovery is their all. blokes’ and support them extremely complex. We know for as long as they need us. that every person requires Given this promise, it would tailored support, which we be unforgivable if we did deliver through individual not secure the long-term recovery plans. We can’t do this provision of services for the without you and guaranteed thousands who desperately income will help us plan for need our support – the future. Please sign up an estimated 75,000 to become a Friend of Help in years ahead. for Heroes today to help us change lives tomorrow. www.h4hweb.com/ h4hfriend
2 www.helpforheroes.org.uk Our Promise
H4H in Numbers
92 & 18 75,000 £31m years old the total number 1,120 given to the oldest who may need individual grants 60 specialist and youngest our support in the awarded in 2015 charity partners recipients of coming years* to date direct H4H grants
£71,000 97% £7.5m 187 committed to training Courses in the daily cost of our funding Psychological 36 subjects run of the support comes directly from Wellbeing by by H4H Career we provide you, the public H4H Hidden Wounds Recovery in 2015
3,836 6,000 50+ Service personnel, £70m members Veterans and their spent delivering sports offered by H4H supported by families have used our world class Sports Recovery, ‘grass the H4H Support our Recovery Centres recovery network roots’ to elite level Fellowships from March 2014 to date to March 2015
73% of the beneficiaries 26 who took part in the £10.5m Paralympic hopefuls 350+ Charity’s Pathfinder in individual grants mentored and helped sporting events programme in 2015 given to date with training each year are in employment, and preparation education or training
*Help for Heroes study backed by 3 Royal College of Psychiatrists, September 2014 www.helpforheroes.org.uk Our Promise
We’re Here for ‘the Blokes’
active, independent and Objectives fulfilling lives where they l e f sure w achieve their full potential. e h orl u g l s s We have four state-of-the-art re e u r Recovery Centres dedicated u l e re to inspiring, enabling and g r fo u r supporting the recovery of o l f e