In the Media - November
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Soldiers’ charity needs a fundraising co-ordinator A CAMPAIGN to raise £5 million for wounded soldiers recovering at a medical centre in Surrey is appealing for a co-ordinator to organise fundraising events in the area. Link: www.surreyad.co.uk |
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Swimmers objected to servicemen using pool Swimmers humiliated seriously injured servicemen undergoing treatment at Headley Court Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre by objecting to their presence in Leatherhead Leisure Centre swimming pool. |
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Help us, please - we're invisible young carers As part of our Christmas appeal we are also continuing to raise money for Help for Heroes, the charity set up to support wounded soldiers. Launched in September, it has already received more than than £1m in donations, more than £100,000 from Sunday Times’ readers. |
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England and Steve McClaren give untill it hurts Each player in the England squad was paid £1,000 by the FA for last Wednesday’s game. And the squad has selflessly donated the sum to the Sun’s Help For Heroes appeal. Link: www.anorak.co.uk |
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Our lions roar back from Iraq Families waited in the freezing cold to greet the infantry. To show support for our Help For Heroes appeal, ALL the loved ones wore wristbands at Picton Barracks, Bulford, Wilts. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Injured soldiers taunted at pool FIFTEEN injured soldiers were heckled and humiliated into leaving a swimming pool where they were having a rehabilitation class. One woman at the Leatherhead Leisure Centre in Surrey HISSED at them: “You don’t deserve to be in here.” She bleated that it was wrong for the council-run pool to rope off a lane for exclusive use by patients at the nearby Headley Court rehabilitation Centre. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Clarkson show cheer for Para A PARA who lost his legs in the Afghan badlands was given a huge boost yesterday with a VIP visit to Top Gear. Lc Bomb Ben Parkinson, 23, watches DVDs of the car show from his hospital bed every night. Presenter Jeremy Clarkson, patron of The Sun’s Help For Heroes appeal, heard about their mega-fan — and fixed a day with the team for him. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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See our boys welcomed home THE nation has been turning out in force to welcome home our troops thanks to The Sun's Help for Heroes campaign. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Sign up and win New York flight SUN readers can boost Help for Heroes — and win two top flight tickets to New York. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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General: Morale's at a low General Sir Richard Dannatt said soldiers are furious at being so overstretched. The Chief of the General Staff said they were “devalued, angry and suffering Iraq Fatigue”. He urged top brass to improve pay, accommodation and medical care. It comes as The Sun’s Help For Heroes campaign demands a better deal for our servicemen. Link: www.thesun.co.uk
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Help for Heroes passes 1m The Help for Heroes campaign, raising money for a new swimming pool and gymnasium at Headley Court, the armed forces rehabilitation centre, has raised more than £1m. Sunday Times readers have donated more than £105,000 for the home in Surrey, where soldiers injured in Iraq and Afghanistan recuperate. Link: www.thetimesonline.co.uk |
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Footie Stars: England Expects The appeal to help injured servicemen and women hit the £1million mark yesterday, but with the help of the Three Lions players it could reach £2million almost instantly. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Cam & Brown united over fund THE Prime Minister last night hailed Sun readers as the Help for Heroes campaign smashed through the £1million mark. He said: “I want to congratulate The Sun on reaching a million pounds of donations to the Help our Heroes campaign. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Generous Brits give fund £1m HELP For Heroes charity bosses were delighted last night as their appeal fund smashed through the £1million barrier. And more than a third of it - £355,000 - has come from Sun readers. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Dad and son to fight together A FATHER and son are to fight side by side against the Taliban – wearing Help For Heroes wristbands. L/Cpl Chris Hutchinson, now on duty in Iraq, has volunteered to join dad David, a TA corporal with 7 Rifles, in Afghanistan. Chris, who is with 4 Rifles, will fly to Helmand as soon as his Iraq duty ends on November 22. Mum Dawn, 49 – wearing one of The Sun’s wristbands – said: “Chris thinks it is right that father and son are together when the going gets tough. “I can understand that. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Sophia is ride there for us BRAVE meningitis victim Sophia Mason – who lost both her legs to the disease – is to enter a gruelling cycle challenge to raise funds for Help For Heroes. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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General's salute to heroes BRITAIN’s top soldier has thanked “tremendous” Sun readers for supporting wounded troops. General Sir Richard Dannatt paid tribute to the tens of thousands who have donated to our Help For Heroes charity appeal. He also saluted thousands more who have given discounts and freebies to make our war-weary troops feel valued. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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For you ... my fallen comrades The past year has been the darkest for British forces in 25 years. And Second Lieutenant William, 25, for the first time played a formal role at the London Remembrance Sunday ceremony, led by the Queen. Wearing the ceremonial uniform of the Blues and Royals, he lined up yesterday alongside Prince Philip and Prince Charles behind the monarch to honour the nation’s war dead in Whitehall. And his company commander at the academy, Major Alexis Roberts, 32, was blown up in Afghanistan last month. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Hero help: We salute you “It’s the British Army way — crack on with a smile on your face. My leg’s never going to grow back, so I may as well make the best of it.” Stu feels passionately about the welfare of his fellow wounded and is keen to give as much back as he can to the forces rehab centre at Headley Court in Surrey. The first target of Help For Heroes is raising £5million to build the centre an urgently-needed swimming pool and gym. Stu said: “Help For Heroes is such an important cause. My leg’s not really crappy — it’s fantastic. But their excellent prosthetics department is totally snowed under. And with the amount of casualties coming back there’ll be a lot more guys like me. “It’s brilliant the way the public have got behind The Sun campaign over the last few weeks. “Even when the wars are long over, there will still be blokes physically and mentally scarred. For them, the war will never be over.” With eight weeks still to go, this year’s services death toll stands at 83. Another 384 were wounded in action and 961 evacuated home. The latest fatality came just yesterday. A soldier serving with 36 Engineer Regiment was killed when his vehicle rolled off a bridge in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province. His next of kin have been informed. Sadly, they will not be the last. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Exclusive: Moving diary of ware hero blinded in Iraq He lost his sight after being hit by a rocket-propelled grenade in Iraq - but Lance Corporal Craig "Freddie" Lundberg does not want your sympathy. Me and Dad have agreed to take part in the Big Battlefield Bike Ride and cycle 340 miles across the battlefields of France to raise money for a new charity called Help for Heroes. We'll do it on a tandem bike. Link: www.mirror.co.uk |
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The wives who worry and wait for the call they hope will never come The wives relied heavily on each other, Amanda Davies said. “If we didn’t have each other we’d fall apart.” They say that they get great support from the regiment. They live in brand new quarters. Victoria Edwards, 28, whose husband is being treated for a shrapnel wound in the much-criticised Selly Oak Hospital in Birmingham, said that the place was now “brilliant – I can’t fault anything.” But they have other complaints, such as the mere £6 extra a day that the soldiers get for serving in Iraq – Mrs Rees said: “That’s not going to compensate for his life.” Or the 30 minutes of free phone calls home each week, the amount that a British prison inmate gets. Or the fact they have to take out private insurance because the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme is inadequate. They are outraged by reports of an RAF typist who received £484,000 for repetitive strain to her thumb, whereas a soldier who lost his legs received £152,000. As for overstretch, that was “more than evident”, said Mrs Davies, whose husband has been away for three and a half of the past ten years. The 2nd Battalion had breaks of 12 and 18 months between its three tours, but much of that time was taken up with courses and preparation. Mrs Davies insisted, however, that the war was worthwhile. “I don’t want to feel my husband spent 18 months doing something that doesn’t count for anything.” Others disagree. “It’s not our war,” Mrs Edwards said. And Ann Roach, 50, the wife of the battalion’s padre, said: “I don’t think we should have gone in the first place, but now we have we should see it though.” Although the wives appreciate the public’s generous response to the new Help for Heroes campaign, Remembrance Day will be far more poignant for them because they have learnt the meaning of sacrifice. Link: www.timesonline.co.uk |
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Join Spurs and support the Help For Heroes campaign this Remembrance Sunday They'll be a minute's silence at White Hart Lane on Sunday ahead of the Wigan kick-off to mark Remembrance Day. But interestingly, some of the players will be sporting Help For Heroes wristbands according to Official Spurs. The campaign is backed by The Sun and aims to raise cash to fund the treatment of soldiers wounded on the frontline. It's a great cause and Tottenham will also hold a charity collection around the ground on Sunday, assisted by members of the 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment who are raising funds for the Afghanistan Memorial Fund. One of their fallen was life-long Spurs fans and Enfield resident Daz Bonner. Please give generously. The site also reports a remembrance service that happened this week in memory of Walter Tull, the first black outfield professional footballer in England who represented Spurs between 1909 and 1911. He was killed in action on March 25, 1918. Link: www.spurspies.tv |
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MoD spies tail crippled soldiers ARMED forces heroes crippled serving their country are being secretly spied on by the MoD – in a heartless campaign against compensation fraud. The snoopers are bringing misery to soldiers already battling disability. One soldier invalided out with a severe head injury and mental trauma was followed around a supermarket by an investigator with a camera hidden in a bag. Injured ex-servicemen and women are furious because a letter warning of the surveillance brands them ALL potential liars. They say it is a cynical and penny-pinching bid to reduce the compo bill – spiralling after fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. There are just TWO recorded cases of fraud among 1.1million war pensioners in the past 20 years. Ex-Para Adam Brown – discharged in 2005 after being partially deafened in a bungled exercise – said: “I was so proud to be a soldier. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Dragon's Den toys aid fund TELLY Dragon’s Den hardman Theo Paphitis yesterday boosted our Help For Heroes appeal – by donating 25 interactive i-TeDDy bears. The tycoon backed i-TeDDY inventor Imran Hakim, 29, from Bolton, on BBC2 show Dragon’s Den. Theo’s stationery firm RYMAN also donated £2,000 to our fund. The 48-year-old said: “Our forces do a fantastic job. “They truly deserve our support.” Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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BA Show they are first class BRITISH AIRWAYS have flown in to give a massive boost to the Sun’s Help For Heroes appeal. BA chief executive Willie Walsh praised Help For Heroes for its battle to raise funds for Our Boys. He said: “We are delighted to be able to show our support. “Our forces demonstrate their support for us every hour of every day, putting their lives on the line for the people of this country. “It is an honour to recognise their bravery.” Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Pop's Blunt to help Heroes “We often talk about whether we should be in Iraq and Afghanistan but forget what it means for the men and women actually doing it. “They are just doing their job – any job the country sends them on.” James added: “I think what The Sun is doing with Help For Heroes is terrific. “The Sun is always the first to support the forces. “When I was out in Kosovo I remember troops reading the paper and being delighted they were getting so much support back home. “At the toughest times, to know you’re being supported and that people actually do care makes a huge difference.” Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Stelios supports The Sun’s 'Help for Heroes' appeal easyGroup boss Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou is offering half-price pleasure cruises to all service personnel plus a £10,000 donation from his own pocket in support of The Sun’s ‘Help for Heroes’ appeal. Sir Stelios, 39, said: “These people are incredibly brave and they deserve all of this and more. These young men and women put themselves voluntarily in grave danger for the sake of their country. They deserve our utmost support. “I’m pleased to be backing Help For Heroes and I’m following in some incredible footsteps in getting behind this cause.” Half price cruises for all service personnel can be booked from now until 31 December 2007 for cruises in Greece departing from November 2007 until October 2008. Link: www.easier.com |
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The platoon for Army's bravest HEROES Platoon is the bravest unit in the British Army – and the last any soldier wants to join. One has been blinded, another paralysed from the neck down, a third needed his whole face rebuilt and a fourth was left almost deaf. The 17 personnel are the most badly wounded from a bloody tour of duty by the 2nd Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment earlier this year. But not one has given up. Instead, they have been formed together in a pioneering project thought up by 2 Lancs to help them rebuild their lives. Shackleton Platoon is the Forces’ only active unit specially designated for wounded troops in the forces. And yesterday its selfless members pledged their backing for The Sun’s appeal on behalf of Help For Heroes – as the fledgling charity topped £600,000. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Babes' boost to our war chest Richard Sharman, 25 – a senior RAF technician based at Odiham, Hants – was on crutches after a training accident. He said: “The Sun’s Help For Heroes campaign is brilliant and I’ll wear the band with pride. I urge everyone to buy one.” Yard assistant Gavin Horder, 25, added: “My best mate is out in Afghanistan at the moment and I really worry about him. “Everyone should put their hands in their pockets to support the forces.” Page 3 girl Amii said: “I think it’s great The Sun is raising money to help wounded troops. They work fearlessly for us and I’m glad I can help.” Help For Heroes’ first target is to raise £5million to build a swimming pool and gym complex at the forces’ rehab centre at Headley Court in Surrey. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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No heroes' return for Brits And it is just one of the reasons we want YOU to show your support for Our Boys and Girls by buying a Help For Heroes wristband. The campaign has been launched to back our troops and improve medical care and facilities for soldiers. Here, a British and a US soldier tell NICK FRANCIS and PAUL THOMPSON of their homecoming experiences. FORMER Paratrooper Tom Poole was branded a “murderer” on returning to Britain after six months of gruelling fighting in Afghanistan. He says: “We had only just finished our tour and we were back on camp in Colchester, Essex. We were getting ready to go for a run when two teenage lads on the other side of the fence started shouting at us, calling us murderers. “I felt sick to the stomach that this is how we were seen by the public. We hadn’t even given our dead a send-off.” Since leaving the army in June, Tom has found work as a lorry driver. But, as it is for many soldiers, fitting back into society has been a struggle. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Compensate our soldiers We know people are uncomfortable with the way our armed forces are being treated. Help for Heroes, our campaign on behalf of soldiers injured in Iraq and Afghanistan, has raised £600,000 in just a few weeks. Sunday Times readers are among those who have given generously. The government should adopt the same attitude. It often seems to have its priorities wrong, squandering taxpayers’ money on muddled schemes while doing little for the men and women who are prepared to die to implement its decisions. It should do the right thing and ensure that they are compensated properly. Link: www.timesonline.co.uk |
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Wounded troops aim for Paralympic gold An appeal for a new gym and swimming pool at Headley Court is the first beneficiary of Help for Heroes, a campaign set up to benefit members of the forces wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan. It has already raised £605,000, of which £95,000 has been donated by Sunday Times readers. Link: www.timesonline.co.uk |
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Basra Two Zero: An SAS veteran views the Iraq war SAS veteran Andy McNab went to Iraq to see the war from the soldiers' point of view. What he found will amaze you...their kit is brilliant, they say this is a golden age for the infantry and they know they're being used as political ammunition – but they just don't give a damn... Gordon Brown says our troops are coming home. A thousand will be back from Iraq by Christmas and the rest, it is reckoned, by the end of 2008. In theory this sounds promising. Indeed, listening to all this talk, you would think our soldiers were lounging round the pool in Basra knocking back a couple of beers before boarding the plane. Well, not exactly. I was in Iraq two weeks ago with my old regiment. Within three hours of arriving, I came under mortar attack, a common event for our troops. If our work out there is done, the Prime Minister clearly hasn't told the insurgents. Link: www.dailymail.co.uk |
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Charity's 5,500 Lotto chances LOTTO bosses Camelot last night became the first big business to join our Help for Heroes campaign with a gesture that could be worth MILLIONS. The charity will get to keep all winnings from the tickets – even if that includes the jackpot. Camelot chiefs are confident that even if Help for Heroes doesn’t match all six numbers, it has a good chance of getting four or five – winning thousands of pounds for improving the forces rehab centre at Headley Court in Surrey. A spokesman said: “Camelot is delighted to support Help For Heroes – they are working for a fantastic cause. Like millions of people up and down the land, we will be keeping our fingers crossed for a great result on Saturday.” Generous Sun readers have already helped to raise more than £500,000 in just a month towards the £5million Help For Heroes appeal – making a massive difference to broken lives. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Prince Harry's soldier Heroes SOLDIER Prince Harry today backs our appeal to help wounded troops – as we call on the big guns of business to do the same. He donned one of the charity’s multi-coloured wristbands with pride as he made a visit to a Royal Navy base in Portsmouth. By last night the fledgling month-old charity, founded to improve medical care and facilities for Forces personnel injured in Iraq and Afghanistan, had raised a fantastic £507,886. |
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Its the fa-mouse Mr Clarkson The Sun columnist was having a lark at the MPH 07 event at Earls Court, West London. He raced against fellow TV Top Gear petrolheads Richard Hammond and James May. Father-of-three Jeremy, 47, gave his support this week to the Sun’s Help For Heroes campaign to improve conditions for our troops. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Injured soldier gets 'insulting' £57,000 This week, after a seven-month wait, he was told by the Ministry of Defence that his injuries are worth a tax-free lump sum of £57,000 compensation as well as a monthly income based on his starter's salary of £900 once he is discharged. His father Phillip, 49, said: "Jamie was just stunned and kept saying: 'It that it? Is that all I mean to them?'" The MoD said: "The lump sum payment is one part of the overall compensation package that will be paid to Jamie Cooper. When he leaves service, he will receive a regular tax-free, index-linked payment. He will also have access to support and financial assistance from other Government departments." Link: www.telegraph.co.uk |
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Soldiers' free Calzaghe tickets SOLDIERS have been given free tickets to see Joe Calzaghe fight in the Millennium Stadium. |
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Boost for Heroes charity MONEY is pouring in for the Help for Heroes charity set up by Downton cartoonist Bryn Parry and wife Emma to support wounded British servicemen and women. The national charity, launched in October and which has its headquarters at Tidworth, is campaigning to raise £5 million to help build a much needed swimming pool and gym complex at Headley Court, the tri-service rehabilitation centre in Surrey. The aim is to get the facilities built by this time next year and the initial response from the public and businesses has been outstanding. advertisement Some £450,000 has so far been donated by a generous public and £2.5 million pledged from businesses. |
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MoD adding insult to injury THE family of an appallingly-wounded teenage squaddie have been given just £57,000 by the Ministry of Defence to care for him for the rest of his life. The youngest Brit struck down in Iraq, he can never work again because of his wounds, which also include extensive nerve damage to his mangled left leg, a smashed pelvis and a shattered right hand. He must also wear a colostomy bag for the rest of his days. If Jamie was a civilian and suffered similar injuries in work, he could claim millions in damages. But the shocking compensation snub means he must rely on hand-outs from organisations like Help For Heroes for the rest of his life, his furious family said last night. Link: www.thesun.co.uk |
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Link: View October articles |
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Link: View September articles | |