The team of 4 set off on the 1st October from RAF Lyneham in a Mercedes GL (kindly donated by Synter Mercedes, Swindon) covered in Help for Heroes signage heading for the first club, Portsmouth. Upon arrival at Fratton Park they were met by local press and club officials. After posing for some pictures and having a look around the ground the lads were presented with a signed Portsmouth shirt.
This was to be the start of a very long but very exciting trip. Every club from the small to the big were incredibly generous. We were soon over-run in our vehicle with signed shirts, balls, penants, pictures etc. Each club were fantastic hosts showing us around their grounds, into the dressing rooms and at times we needed to remind ourselves that this was infact a charity trip and not a boys day out!!! As football fans we were like little kids and loved every minute but the main aim was to get as much memrobilia to auction off and raise money for Help for Heroes. We were overwhelmed by the amount of footballing memrobilia we were given by the clubs and indeed by members of the public. Whilst visiting West Ham a lady saw what we were doing, went into the club shop and bought a West Ham jacket for us to put towards the auction. As serving members of Her Majesty's RAF it is heart warming to see people like this who appreciate us for the job we do.
We all had our highlights, Johnny's was holding the European Cup at Anfield, Gaz's was visting Stamford Bridge and seeing the changing rooms, David's was having his picture taken at every ground in his England shirt but for Ben being a Newcastle fan he was depressed given that they are now in the Championship!!!
On a serious note, this is for a great cause. More and more in the news we are seeing Bodies of the Fallen being repatriated to RAF Lyneham but what your TV's and Newspapers don't show are the injured men and women being brought home on a more and more regular basis. These men and women have lost eyesight, limbs etc and what they need is your help.
'How can I help?' you might ask. Well it's simple - just donate whatever you feel comfortable giving and this will go towards the building of a Rehabilitation Centre at Headley Court. Here, men and women from the British Armed Forces who have been injured will be given professional help in their rehabilitation and getting their lives back to as normal as possible.
I'm sure you don't need me to tell you what a worthwhile cause this charity is. Any donation you can give will be greatly appreciated.
We have not only got footballing items, we also have F1 items, hotel breaks, spa days and much more. These will all be auctioned off at a Black Tie dinner in the Wiltshire Golf and Country Club in Wootton Bassett on 19th November. As well as the auction, Stuart Pearce (Ex England International and now England U21 Manager) will be the After Dinner Speaker.
Tickets for the Auction are £40 and are avaliable from Mr David Harries at Synter Mercedes on 01793 756666 or on e-mail at davidharries@synter.co.uk
Thank you again for taking the time to visit our JustGiving page.
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