On April 30th 2025 we will be taking part of The Forces March aid of The Veterans Charity.

We will be embarking on the 5-day, 135 mile WW2 training march from Ilfracombe, North Devon, back home to Bulford, Wiltshire. The 1942 march was undertaken by men who would go on to spearhead the entire D-Day liberation with the assault on Pegasus Bridge.

The Veterans Charity was founded in March 2008 to help support UK Veterans of all generations. They support for Veterans facing hardship by providing necessary essentials such as food shopping, clothing, household items, utilities support and even electronics for vital communication. Despite being a small, primarily self-funded charity, they have supported 4,500 Veterans and their families.

John served 25 years in the British Army. He began his career as part of Royal Corps of Transport (RTC) which disbanded into the Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) for 22 years before moving to Military Provost Guard Service (MPGS) for the remainder of his service.

After completing his full-service John is also a cancer survivor. He was diagnosed with bowel cancer which also affected his prostate and has left him with a double stoma. He has not let this impact any aspect of his life, returning to work after just 11 weeks instead of the advised and expected year off following 12-hour surgery.

On top of all this he continues to work as a HGV Driver and completed ‘Walk The Wight’ in 2023. This is an annual charity event that raises money for Mountbatten Hospice were participants walk 26.5 miles around the Isle of Wight. For John this is the next challenge to conquer.

I, Courtney want to take part in the Forces March not only to support The Veterans Charity and the work they do, but also my Dad. Having grown up in a military environment community is key and it’s how we get by, supporting one another in times of hardship. As far as I’m concerned my Dad is the best guy, always showing up and supporting his family, friends, and neighbours by going above and beyond, exceeding all expectations. Dad has always been so supportive of all my crazy ideas and I’m excited to join him on this crazy 5-day adventure.

We would be ever so grateful if you could help us reach our combined target of £1,000 for this amazing charity so they can keep providing the essential help they offer to Veterans and their families.

~ John & Courtney x