Meet Neil Heritage
Trustee for Blesma since:
25 June 2023
Their Story
Neil joined the Royal Signals aged 16 and served operationally in Bosnia, Northern Ireland and Iraq. He was medically discharged after 11 years’ service following a suicide bomb attack in 2004 whilst serving in Iraq. The incident resulted in him becoming a bi-lateral above knee amputee. Neil joined the association in 2004 and has benefitted from several events including adaptive skiing and rafting.
Since being injured Neil has rowed across the Atlantic Ocean as part of the Row 2 Recovery team which raised over 1 million pounds for charity. In 2020 Neil became the first above knee amputee to summit the Matterhorn, achieving this on his 3rd attempt. In 2023 he formed part of a team supported by BLESMA to kayak the North-East Pacific Inside Passage from Washington State to Alaska. Neil has also qualified as a scuba diving instructor.
Outside of Blesma Neil is the CEO of the charity Climb 2 Recovery. Formed in 2016, the charity has supported over 100 wounded, injured and sick veterans to gain experience and qualifications as outdoor instructors with many returning to work in the industry. He also works as a motivational speaker and as an instructor and facilitator for a Management and leadership training company.