We are 10 weeks in now and have covered 27,000 miles so far - it is getting harder and harder now, and we have 7 weeks left to go. Thank you so much for those that have been so generous, but if you are reading this for the first time I would be grateful if you can help me to reach my personal target of £3131.31!! i am getting to the gym most nights to push out some miles, and at the end of a long day, it is pretty hard work sometimes I can promise you, but definitely for worthwhile causes; so please help!!

Anyway, thank you very much for those that have helped, it really means a lot to us. for those that have not yet had the chance to donate, if you just each gave £1 then we would reach our target of £31K, please read on....

I am out on the latest tour of Afghanistan with the Goldstars for 4 months. Those amongst you that are old Squadron members will recall our motto In Caelum Indicum Primus, and it is back to the area of the Northwestern Frontier that we return, again directly supporting our UK troops, and those of our NATO Allies.
 

The casualty rate for troops on the ground is especially high in the heat of the Afghanistan summer and the 'fighting season'. Whilst the death of one of our soldiers, sailors, or airmen who are serving their queen and country, still just about makes the headline news, the numbers of those who come home critically, or severely injured, or psychologically scarred do not; despite that there are many.

Two of the charities we are raising money do an tremendous job supporting those who return who need help: Help For Heroes and Tickets for Troops, I am sure you will have heard of them and what they do. The third charity that will equally share the money that we raise is UK Epilepsy, a charity close to the hearts of members of the Squadron. For those who would like to know a little more about this particular charity, here are some FACTS:

 

• One in 20 people will have a one-off epileptic seizure at some point in their life (although this does not necessarily mean that they have epilepsy).
• One in 50 people will have epilepsy at some time in their life (not everyone with epilepsy will have it for life).
• Around 75 people are diagnosed with epilepsy every day.
• There are around 456,000 people in the UK who have epilepsy. That’s about one in every 131 people. n return for your kind donations the personnel on 31 Sqn will be aiming to travel 31,000 miles (in the gym!) during our detachment, via the means of bike, rowing machine and cross trainer (some strange people may even run!). 

 

 

For your kindly donated money we shall be aiming to travel, via any means available in the Kandahar gym, 31,000 miles!! At a pound a mile we think that is a reasonable rate! To put the distance into context for you - the nearest any other squadron has travelled previously is 24,000 miles (once around the world), so as you can see, as usual 31 Sqn are going to go the extra distance!!!

 

Please help us - donations of any size will help, so please help us to help our charities. Thanks for your support and we'll keep you posted on how we are doing!

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

 

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Best Wishes

Jim