A local Sunderland army veteran has marked Armed Forces Day by hosting a work based charity fundraiser at one of the city’s largest employers.
Paul Davis, who served in the British army for over 15 years, organised an event at EDF Energy, Doxford International Business Park that raised £1226-69 for the North-East charity, Veterans at Ease.
The charity supports veterans, reservists, serving military personnel and their families with free therapy and support for post-traumatic stress disorder and other combat related stress issues. Each trained therapist has first-hand experience of combat related issues.
Paul, who served in the Falklands, Gulf and in Northern Ireland, began working for EDF Energy over 21 years ago following medical discharge from the army. He said: “Veterans at Ease is a fantastic charity which supports so many former and current service men and women who suffer with combat related issues.
“I have first-hand experience in using the charity and its services. I wanted to give something back and organise an event to raise awareness of the charity and raise money to support the organisation. As Reserved Forces Day is this week we also wanted to raise awareness of the Reserve Forces by inviting in our local organisations to spread the word.
“My colleagues and management at EDF Energy Doxford are all very supportive and we all had a fantastic day. Events like this also provide us with an opportunity to open up and get to know one another, which is one of the great things about working here.”
Staff at the customer service centre took part in a dress down day; tombola’s and raffles to fundraise for the charity.