The Help for Heroes (H4H) Recovery Centre in Colchester recently welcomed a special guest. Comedian Sean Kelly, star of TV’s Storage Hunters, popped into Chavasse VC House for a tour of the facilities; he even brought his co-stars Green Mile and T-Money.
Sean, who was in the army himself, is currently on a stand-up tour of the UK. The audience are encouraged to bring in items for auction after the show and all proceeds are being donated to H4H. Sean talked candidly about why he chose to support the charity during his recent visit:
“I suffered from post-traumatic stress following my service in Iraq during the early nineties but there were no organisations like H4H at the time. My wife helped me as much as she could but I needed so much more help. I felt like I was battling it alone. I would find myself driving along and the next thing I’d be on the side of the road crying my eyes out. I couldn’t remember how I got there. I also had nightmares which tortured me for a long time”.
Life is very different now though and Sean is determined that nobody else should have to go through that alone. He had some words of encouragement for those who have been wounded, injured or have become sick whilst in service and are struggling:
“Please just pick up the phone and ask for some help; don’t go it alone. I liken it to combat. You’re not expected to go it alone then. When you’re in a unit everyone has a job and when one goes down others come to their aid. You didn’t go it alone in Iraq or Afghanistan so you shouldn’t be going it alone once home. If you’re feeling down then there are people who will reach out to you. The sooner you do so then the sooner you will recover”.
Chavasse VC House, inspires, enables and supports those who are wounded, injured or sick while serving our country, encouraging them to lead active, independent and fulfilling lives, while also supporting their loved ones. With an adaptive gym, an award winning reflective garden (Hope on the Horizon), a Support Hub made up of multiple charities and other organisations, psychological well-being suite, en-suite bedrooms, family rooms and a creative studio, the Centre has been specially designed to offer the very best recovery environment.
Sean said: “The Recovery Centre in Colchester is a fabulous facility. It’s nice to know that for those men and women who come home from combat that there’s a clean, professional and well-staffed facility where they can get the help that they need and deserve. It’s also nice to know that every time we’re on stage entertaining that we’re doing it with a purpose. We’re helping people we may never meet but whom we have a connection to; because we know what they’ve gone though”.
The rest of the tour will take Sean and team to: Crewe, Northampton, Folkestone, Harlow, Leeds, Crawley, Bury-St-Edmunds, Exeter, Yeovil, Truro, Swansea, Brighton, Wolverhampton, Swindon, Aldershot and Birmingham.
