‘Big lift’ for forces families in Worthing – Worthing Pier- 4pm today – be there to show your support. Former serviceman Ben Greer will be hoping to give the families of service personnel a ‘big lift’ when the latest leg of his charity walk comes to Worthing next Tuesday 25th at 4pm. The walk, 4.4 miles in 101 towns and cities nationally, is designed to raise funds and also raise awareness of the price paid by servicemen and women in the UK and abroad. He will wear a backpack weighing 100 kilos [220lbs] to reflect the weight of an injured serviceman or woman being carried from the front line. Ben completed six tours in Afghanistan, serving as a Chinook helicopter crewman. During these tours he and his colleagues were tasked with providing civilian and military casualty evacuation from the front line, as part of the Immediate Response Team [IRT]. Ben knows only too well the awful price paid by so many brave men and women to secure the safe lifestyle which British citizens so regularly take for granted. To date, 441 British service personnel have lost their lives in this conflict, and Ben is undertaking The Big Lift [thebiglift.co.uk] to honour each and every one of those individuals and show support for their families. Ben says, “Though the aspiration is to raise in excess of £100,000 over the course of the event, it is more important to create a focal point for the British public to join in and show their support for the families. The events are nationwide, so people all over the UK can participate and express their own support”, said Ben. “This series of events is not pro-war, not political and not religious. It is just pro those who have gone a little further to allow us to live the lives that we do. Every mile has a name!” To date Ben has carried his load for over 230 miles in 52 locations. There are 49 more to go culminating in the final mile from the Cenotaph to Buckingham Palace on 21st July where he hopes he will be joined by supporters from across the country. Sue Slaughter, helping to organising the Worthing leg of the event said, “I know from personal experience how vital the work these charities do is. My son did three tours in Afghanistan, and during his last one he was injured and brought home by medical teams. Thank goodness, he made a full recovery, but over 400 other families haven’t been as lucky as mine. That’s why we should all be supporting Ben in his challenge.” Members of the public can support Ben and his team in many ways – walk a mile with him, make a donation or just like the event on Facebook or follow him on Twitter @thebiglife2013 or even take control of one of the events to come. So far Ben has raised over £ 15,000 and details of his progress and forthcoming walks can be found at the event website: thebiglift.co.uk The money raised by The Big Lift will be donated to the ABF The Soldiers’ Charity, the RAF Benevolent fund, The Royal Navy and Marines Charity, SSAFA and Help for Heroes, where the funds will be used to help those who have lost loved ones to rebuild their lives. For more information about the wider event, contact [email protected] thebiglift.co.uk
Posted on: Tue, 25 Jun 2013 06:38:01 +0000
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