After Colin and Cammy met, sharing their own stories, and becoming friends, bound by their own experiences, they both realised they could help so many other people, who are left ‘alone’ to deal with their experiences, thoughts and traumas. They decided to build a platform that would provide help and support to individuals and their families, all in the way of Who Dares Cares.
I joined the army at the age of 15 after a troubled childhood and passed initial selection into the SAS, first time, aged only 23. After being captured, stripped naked and mock executions carried out, I then left active service from the SAS, troubled by a lot of the experiences that I had faced, but also troubled by so many of my friends and colleagues also suffering from many of the same or similar experiences as myself. But most of all, losing a lot of them, including my brother, to suicide.
I joined the army at the age of 19, a boyhood dream. I served with the KOSB (Kings Own Scottish Borderers), along with many other cap badges over the years. On the 17th May 1992, I was involved in a horrific incident that left me with lasting and devastating effects on my career and personal life. Whilst service in the KOSB and Parachute Regiment, I was taken by Republicans in Northern Ireland, beaten to near death, until rescued by the actions of a paratrooper, and told in hospital that I was the luckiest man alive.
After all the beatings and concrete slabs dropped on my head, I didn’t think it could have gotten any worse for me, but the Republicans made an attempt to shoot me in my head, only saved by the trigger of the weapon failing to fire. Again I was rescued by my fellow soldiers and treated for both my physical and mental wounds. After the physical wounds healed, the mental ones went unnoticed and I continued to serve until 2011 and retired after 24 years because of the injuries that I sustained over the years – both physical and mental. After leaving active service, I received very little help and I struggled to cope which resulted in an attempt at taking my own life, the same as many of my former friends and colleagues had done.
We dare you to care, become active in our charity work, support our activities, take part and raise funds to help our future activities.