Thank you from Tom and Patrick for visiting our team fundraising page.
Please give as much as you can to help us achieve the target of £5,000. On this page below you will have the option of giving to Combat Stress and/or Winchester Churches Nightshelter. Maybe you can split your donations 50:50?
This Christmas season we will walk along the byways of England from the parish church of Ottery St Mary in Devon to Winchester Cathedral to raise awareness of the curses of PTSD and related homelessness. The route of around 120 miles will take us about 5 days and we will walk as tramps, living off the goodwill of strangers, and sleeping rough in order to meet the goal of raising £1,000 for two charities that work tirelessly to assist those who struggle with these issues.
Combat Stress is the UK's leading Veterans' mental health charity. Mental ill-health such as PTSD affects ex-Service men and women of all ages. Right now, the charity supports over 5,900 Veterans aged from 18 to 97. It is a vital lifeline for these men and women, and their families and currently spends over £15 million per annum delivering its unique range of specialist treatment and welfare support which is always free of charge.
Winchester Churches Nightshelter provides a vital lifeline to the homeless, and remains the only Nightshelter offering direct access emergency accommodation in Hampshire. The Nightshelter supports up to 200 homeless people annually. As well as receiving good food and accommodation, residents benefit from a programme of practical and emotional support to help them to rebuild their lives and escape homelessness for good. Many of the people they deal with are ex-military. There is a direct link between mental health problems such as PTSD and homelessness.
Thank you from both of us, and from all of those who will benefit from your generosity this Christmas tide, when even Jesus was born with no home to call his own.
