Spring Newsletter 2019
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Spring Newsletter 2019 Welcome to the Spring Newsletter for Trusts and Livery Companies. In this issue we introduce the RAF Benevolent Fund Centenary Appeal, share veterans’ stories, and give an update on some latest welfare developments. In 2019, the Fund’s 100th anniversary year, we are making a commitment to double the number of RAF Family members we help, to 100,000 people by 2021. There are 1.5 million people in the RAF Family today. Three-quarters are over 65 years of age – the Second World War and National Service generations. The older veterans’ top welfare needs are identified as: self-care, mobility, loneliness and isolation, financial security, and mental health and wellbeing. The Fund has a duty of care to those who have donned the light blue uniform, particularly as they face often complex welfare needs in older age. We estimate that as many as 300,000 RAF Family members need support, of whom 100,000 need our help urgently. In our centenary year we are launching a campaign to find these veterans and ensure we can provide them with the support they deserve. Doubling our reach will cost £90m over 5 years, with 2023 seeing a peak of demand before the RAF Family is expected to reduce in size. We are making a commitment to invest £31m from the charity’s reserves and aim to raise £49m through ongoing fundraising involvement. This will leave a shortfall – our Centenary Appeal – of £10m. Everyone is close to someone who served: our research has determined that 1 in 10 of over 65-year-old people in the UK is a member of the RAF Family. We hope you will join us in the search to help identify members of the RAF Family in need of tailored assistance in our communities, and continue to support us financially to ensure we can meet the expected increase in demand for services – before time runs out. Do get in touch if you would like to discuss how you can be involved. 1 Sharing our Centenary Appeal with Trusts and Livery Companies The first event marking the Fund’s centenary was held on 3 April at the Churchill War Rooms. The afternoon offered a wonderful opportunity to introduce supporters to some of the veterans we help and set out our campaign to double the Fund’s reach. Director of Fundraising and Communications, John Trampleasure, revealed our Centenary Appeal to 40 Trust and Livery Company representatives, all friends of the Fund. Fund Ambassadors, Rob Bugden and Bob Greig, shared their experiences with guests, setting out how the Fund had provided each of them with a lifeline in their time of need, when life had taken an unexpected turn. They were later joined by Second World War veteran and Fund beneficiary, the Rev. George Wood. Rob Bugden shares his story with the audience George, interviewed by his granddaughter Rachel Kramer who works at the Fund, enthralled the audience with tales of being shot down over enemy territory, surviving a dash across an active minefield and seeking out the French Resistance to get him home. George’s story was fascinating, and his selfless and brave service all those years ago was not unusual for the day. The Fund is now proud to assist him, with donors’ support, which allows him to live in a place where he feels safe, secure and his needs are catered for. The Fund is there for all RAF veterans, whenever and whatever their length of service, be it one day or 100, whether they consider their service to be remarkable or not. We exist to help the RAF Family and repay the debt we all owe to those who answered their country’s call, and also to support their immediate family and surviving dependants. The Rev. George Wood captivates guests This message was brought home at the event by Air Vice-Marshal Elaine West, Fund Trustee and the first female two-star member of the armed forces after the Second World War. Elaine spoke of her direct experience of the Fund’s benevolence, on both the receiving and giving ends. Director of Welfare and Policy, Air Commodore Paul Hughesdon, shared the Fund’s more detailed plans, to make doubling our reach possible. This reality depends in large part on continuing, generous support of Trusts and Livery Companies, to repay our common debt. 2 Celebrating four generations of noble service The Fund has been helping individuals like Mike Waring and his family for 100 years. We can help more people like Mike if we know about them – there is no list of names or database to help us find them. Help spread the word in our centenary and get in touch if you know someone who might need the Fund’s support. Squadron Leader Mike Waring has been in the RAF for over 23 years, but his family’s connection stretches back much further. Mike explains: “My family is distinctive for having four generations of RAF pilots. “My great grandfather, Wada Pickard, was in the Royal Flying Corps and transferred to the Royal Air Force when it was formed in 1918. He flew F.E.2bs in the First World War. “My grandfather was in Bomber Command and flew Stirlings. Like so many of his colleagues, he paid the ultimate sacrifice and was killed whilst flying over Norway on 1 January 1945. My dad served in the RAF for an impressive 36 years, most of which was spent flying helicopters and he retired as a Squadron Leader – I couldn’t be more proud of how devoted he’s been to his service.” The Fund has also played an important role in the lives of Mike and his family: “My grandfather died when my grandmother was three months pregnant with Dad. It must have been an awful time, but the Fund helped her give him all the things she wanted to as a mother. They paid for my dad’s education and covered his gliding lessons and flying licence, which had such a massive impact on what he then chose to do with his life.” “The Fund continues to help my family today. I have a daughter who has special needs and they give us support every year. The RAF Benevolent Fund is integral to my and my family’s time in the RAF, and I want to say a big thank you to the Fund and all its supporters.” Do you have a story to share? The RAF’s history is packed with incredible stories, from towering tales of frontline bravery to jovial memories of mess hall mishaps. And who better to tell these timeless stories than the brave ones who were there, and their friends and family? Storylines is a place for the RAF Family to share memories of their time of service. Together, we can paint a richer picture of RAF life and take pride in its remarkable tradition of protecting the nation. Share your story with us on Storylines, and sign up for a monthly newsletter to receive tales of epic battles, budding romances and heartfelt dramas. Visit: storylines.rafbf.org 3 New community scheme to help isolated RAF veterans Suffolk, Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk have been selected as locations for a new project aimed at supporting RAF veterans who face loneliness and isolation. In its centenary year, the Fund has launched a new Community Engagement Worker pilot scheme to help older RAF veterans reconnect with their local communities. The scheme is a response to our research that highlighted these issues as most concerning the older generation of RAF veterans. Peter Ashcroft, Welfare Projects Manager at the Fund, said: “The Community Engagement Worker project is just one measure we have introduced to tackle the issue of loneliness and social isolation among older veterans. Other new initiatives include a Telephone Friendship Group service and group wellbeing breaks. “This year marks the RAF Benevolent Fund's centenary and we are asking the public to help us reach out to members of the RAF Family who may have fallen off our radar and let them know we are here to help. We want to ensure every RAF veteran, no matter how long they served, receives the support their service to their country deserves.” The Community Engagement Workers will get to know the social activities, groups and associations across the four counties and work with individuals to understand the barriers to them becoming more socially engaged and how to overcome them. This will range from attending a veterans’ breakfast meeting with someone for the first time, to establishing activities where none currently exist. Beneficiaries enjoy time-honoured camaraderie Declan Geraghty, of Thetford, will be taking on the Suffolk Community Engagement Worker role. His 24-year career as a Royal Air Force armourer means he knows the RAF well. He said: “It has always been deeply humbling, the sacrifices that those who fought before us made, and as an RAF veteran I have some insight into that. This is an opportunity of a lifetime, and I feel like I'm part of the RAF Family again. Success in this job is going to be very different for each person. This is about individuals and what they need to feel part of the RAF Family and the wider community again.” The pilot scheme will run for two years, costing £217,000 per annum including £40,000 for project activities each year. After evaluation of the pilot, it is hoped this service will be rolled out across other parts of the UK. 4 A friendly voice at the end of the phone 95-year-old Howard Battson recently came back on our radar.