Walking With The Wounded Team to visit Blesma’s Blackpool Home as part of their ‘Walk of Britain’
8 September 2015
A team of injured veterans from the UK and the United States will be visiting Blesma’s Blackpool Home on Lytham Road on Thursday 17th September as part of their ‘Walk of Britain’ which is raising money for Walking With The Wounded.
The Walk of Britain expedition will see four British and two US wounded veterans walk 1,000 miles across mainland Britain, having started in Scotland on August 22nd. They will be finishing at Buckingham Palace on November 1st.
The team is made up of Alec Robotham, Matt Fisher, Scott Ransley, Stewart Hill and Americans Kirstie Ennis and Andrew Bement, all of whom have suffered life-changing injuries while serving with the military on overseas operations.
By the time they reach Blackpool, the team will have completed the 27th day of the 72-day challenge which so far has raised over £11,500 for Walking With The Wounded.
Waiting to receive the team at Blesma Blackpool will be the Home’s residents and staff, including Chief Executive Barry Le Grys MBE. Along with the Blesma party, the Lord Lieutenant of Lancashire, Lord Shuttleworth and his wife Lady Shuttleworth will be present. The Mayor of Blackpool, Councillor Peter Callow and the Mayoress Councillor Maxine Callow will also be in attendance.
Barry says: “It is marvellous to host the Walk of Britain at the Blesma Home as they pass through Blackpool. Blesma was born in the aftermath of WW1 to assist limbless veterans and cares for its Members through life as the Home bears witness. We are a specialist Service charity though and we recognise the holistic needs of Members so we naturally turn to the likes of Walking With The Wounded for their own brand of expertise when our Members would benefit. The visit today demonstrates how we can all travel forward together in the Service charity arena.”
Blesma, The Limbless Veterans is the national charity for all limbless service men and women, their widows and dependants. It was formed in the years following the First World War and became a national charity in 1932.
To find out more about the walk and how you can get involved, go to: http://walkingwiththewounded.org.uk/walkofbritain2015/about-the-walk/
-ENDS-
Notes to Editor
Hi-res images can be downloaded from the links below:
Walk of Britain team (L-R Stewart Hill, Matt Fisher, Scott Ransley, Kirstie Ennis, Andrew Bement and Alec Robotham): /media/374560/Photo-21-08-2015-17-28-47.jpg
About Blesma, The Limbless Veterans
Blesma, The Limbless Veterans is the national charity for all limbless serving and ex-service men and women, their widows and dependants. It is a membership organisation which helps wounded service men and women rebuild their lives by providing rehabilitation activities and welfare support. Their membership includes those who have lost the use of a limb, an eye or the sight of an eye.
Blesma was formed in the years following the First World War and became a national charity in 1932. Blesma today has over 4000 Members and widows. The membership consists of men and women who have served during the Second World War and the many subsequent conflicts and peacekeeping operations since, including the Falklands, Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Follow us on Twitter @Blesma
About Walking With The Wounded
Walking With The Wounded was established in 2010 to raise funds for the re-education and re-training of our wounded servicemen and women. For most, leaving the Armed Forces was not something they were planning before their injuries, and so most are not prepared for the move from one career to another. Further to this they are now facing a future with physical and mental disabilities.
WWTW helps fund training and education to help them find a career, so that they can support themselves and re-build a life in the civilian work place. We don’t just focus on those leaving the services today – the lack of awareness of the impact of physical and mental injury dates back to the Falklands and Northern Ireland. WWTW aims to provide a support network to all injured veterans.
For further information on Blesma, The Limbless Veterans, contact
Bryony Stevens, Media and Communications Assistant
T: 020 8590 1124
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