UK Cruisers Club Charity of the year



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	UK Cruisers Registered Charity of the year As each new UKC year begins, the club chooses a registered charity as the beneficiary for its fundraising efforts throughout the year. From 1st March 2010 until 28th February 2011, Help for Heroes will receive the monies generated.

	Help for Heroes was founded by Bryn and Emma Parry after a profoundly moving visit to Selly Oak Hospital in the summer of 2007. Bryn and Emma met some extraordinarily brave young people who had been badly wounded and they just wanted to do something to help. The charity is strictly non-political and recognises that war happens under any government and at times is unavoidable. However, this does not detract from the fact that there are casualties of war, and due to the commitment and sacrifices our servicemen and women make, it is even more important that they are supported and provided with aftercare should they suffer mental scaring, injury or worse still amputation. For those of you who may not know me, my name is Jacqui Shepherd , otherwise known as the other half of Shep (Mark Shepherd). I also own an almond coloured PT Cruiser which goes by the name of ‘Muttley’. Back in the summer of 2009, I was having some thoughts as to what would be the next worthy charity to receive our support, especially as 2010 marks our 10th Anniversary. One charity that sprung to mind was Help for Heroes. This seemed especially poignant in light of what was happening with our troops in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the fact that I have a cousin, who at the age of just 19, served his time during part of the conflict.

	I was spurred on having met a really nice gentleman, James Burns, a volunteer co-ordinator for Help for Heroes at Dunsfold Aerodrome, one of UKCs many great days out in 2009. I duly made a proposal to the Organisers of UKC in the hope that they would consider this charity, and I am thrilled to say I was successful! The Help for Heroes charity was given its first task by General Sir Richard Dannatt, Head of the Army which was to raise £6 million in order to provide a swimming pool and gym complex at the Tri Service Rehabilitation centre at Headley Court, Surrey. With the support and dedication of the public, Royalty, the Armed Forces, celebrities and press, this task was achieved with fantastic results. However it is important that donations and fund raising events carry on to enable the charity to continue funding and here is an example of some of those causes: • The upgrade of the Physical Rehabilitation Centre in Headley Court so that it can successfully complete in 2010 and provide a new swimming pool and gym complex. • Personnel Recovery Centres can be established and maintained throughout the UK to enable the wounded have support so that they can return swiftly back to duty or alternatively be rehabilitated into civilian employment. • The British Limbless Ex Service Men’s Association (BLESMA) can continue to provide necessary care so that amputees can support other amputees and those individuals can participate in life-changing experiences, for example sailing, skiing; experiences they thought would be an impossible task, yet when achieved are mentally and physically rewarding, which in turn is great for improving confidence and self-esteem. • For the charity to continue its link with Troop Aid which provides the wounded servicemen and women, who pass through military hospitals, with ‘ Grab bags’ containing simple items such as a razor, writing paper, the means for a telephone call and most importantly messages of support from people in UK (other than family members). It's very humbling to hear our servicemen and women say they are just doing their job and don't see themselves as heroes. However, unless placed in the same situation, I don't think we can even begin to imagine the devastating sights and experiences our troops deal with in modern combat. Therefore, I'm sure you'll agree they are all modern day heroes and deserve our support during our special 10th Anniversary fund raising events of 2010! I'm really looking forward to the challenge of co-ordinating our chosen charity and making this a great year of fundraising, so your help and support will be very much appreciated, together with any ideas you think will help us raise money for Help For Heroes . Kind regards and best wishes Jacquie For further details, please PM Shep on the UKC message board or email me direct on m.jshepherd@btopenworld.com http://www.helpforheroes.org.uk Registered charity number: 1120920

	Please click here to read about our previous years' fundraising

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