This particular update is being written by our driver Ian, for reasons that will soon become apparent.
Hello everyone, please forgive me, but this is an update that is very dear to my heart and I’m going to be a little self indulgent.
It’s safe to assume that most of you did not have the pleasure of meeting my father. It is not an understatement to say we would not have got to this stage without him, even without the obvious input!
Those that did have the pleasure of meeting him will attest that he was certainly one of a kind.
My dad and his brother took over the running of the family business when they finished their service in the RAF. For many years they built the business and very soon established a reputation for going the extra mile with their personal service.
He was a very keen outdoorsman, my dad, and as children we would travel all over the country on camping holidays, he continued these trips right up until his health failed, sometimes going off on his own with his little caravan.
His big love outside of work was his garden. His garden started around an acre and all of his spare time was spent tending to his prize winning tomatos and vegetables.
He was incredibly proud of his time in the RAF and became a bit of a local celebrity by organising the shop window every rememberance day to honour not just the armed services but all those choose to serve others, from nurses to refuse collectors.
He was a very independant man and although he would ask for help on occasion, this would only be because he literally couldn’t do it on his own, or (more usually) as some form of punishment for a childhood misdemeanour. (Oh, the joys of digging the vegetable patch, such happy days!)
What I have so far ommited to mention is that my dad was an amputee. Following a motorcycle accident whilst on duty he lost his right arm just below the elbow. Despite this he refused to let his injury define him and continued to live his life with no limits.
Throughout my life and definitely whilst embarking on this project, as soon as something got either heavy or difficult I would ponder “What would dad do?”
Towards the end of his life, as other health issues began to catch up with him, he began to need more specialist help than the family could provide and as a family we were so fortunate to make contact with a charity that were tireless in their support.
That particular charity is BLESMA.
We are so proud that they have agreed to let us carry their logo on our car. The British Limbless ExServiceMen Association was founded after the first world war and have been helping veterans and their families ever since.
They are still helping us by inviting my dear mother for days and weekends away. The people involved are all incredibly friendly and quite literally can’t do enough.
We will do our best to raise awareness of this organisation alongside The Sharon Dunster Foundation we have been associated with since the beginning of the project.
Both incredibly good causes that need a lot more exposure.
Thank you for allowing me to share my family history and if you have a spare minute please follow the weblinks to both of these incredible causes.
