Regularly updated with all the latest news and information

For Forthcoming Events Please Click Here

NEWS

August 2010

Nicci Miles - Song for our Troops

Sincere thanks to Nicci who has written a beautiful song in honour of our Troops, the reasons in Nicci's words - 'I wrote this song whilst a friend of mine was serving in Iraq in 2003. At the time I felt that our troops were forgotten by the general public and wanted to write a song which could give a feeling of hope and show that we care. I hope this song helps lift morale and give hope to our service men and women of of country and their families. Men and women of our armed forces are risking their lives every day serving for our country. I want to show them that we care about these unbelievably brave people. I have only just had this song recorded and produced and now want to share it with our British Forces and their loved ones.
You can buy the song at: http://www.last.fm/music/Nicci+Miles/...
I am donating proceeds of this song to Support Our Soldiers and Help For Heroes .
http://niccimiles.com   http://myspace.com/niccimiles'  Please do listen to the song and accompanying video on Youtube

1st August - St Patrick's ARFL's Centenary Celebrations

Report from Carol - 'We were invited to do an awareness  and merchandise stall at St Patrick’s ARFL’s Centenary celebration match on August 1st, so Lesley, Michelle and myself went along and set up our gazebo. We very soon had a visit from the lads from Army Careers who were manning the paintball tunnel. They were very interested in our ‘Name the Teddy’ competition and all paid their pound and had a guess at his name! It wasn’t as busy as hoped but we did sell £124 worth of raffle tickets and took  £17 in merchandise sales. We had £44 in general donations £20 of which came from the lads doing the paintball when they took one of our buckets and put it on the paintball table. Then, when people asked how much it was to have a go, they said “It’s free of charge but we welcome donations to Support Our Soldiers”....good lads! St Patrick’s Rugby Club gave us a £100 donation to our 3 Peaks Challenge appeal and we also added the £30 we made from the ‘Name the Bear’ to that. The winning name was revealed by Wigan Warrior’s Darryl Goulding and the winner was tiny Molly who had correctly guessed ‘Harry’ as the bear’s name. Although we didn’t make a fortune we had a very successful day in as much as we made ‘friends’ with St Patrick’s. They have invited us along to their Festival day on August 21st and I have no doubt we will work with them lots in the future.

July 2010

Thank You

Many thanks to the following who have kindly sent in parcels, cards, messages of support or cool ties over the past few weeks, these have all been forwarded on to our boys and girls in Afghanistan where they will be much appreciated - Alasdair Redman and customers at Portnahaven Stores, Islay, Bournemouth & West Hampshire Water - 15 parcels, A Winston, Mr Legg, Dave & Brenda, Mr Pick, Enterprise Leyland & Enterprise Brighouse, Claire Palmer, Lynda Banks, Hannah, Kerie Smith, Jane Symon, B Cook, Janice Booth, Nicola Tate, P Player, Manningham Ward Labour Club - 15 parcels, Kath Drake - 6 parcels, and Louise Sylvester. Special thanks to Neil Hingorani for sending 26 signed copies of his book The Perfect Match.

Penzance Office Opening

We're delighted to announce the opening of our new Penzance office managed by Sue our Regional Coordinator for the Cornwall area.  The office will be manned Tuesday to Thursdays 11am to 3pm and members of the public are welcome to call in with parcel donations or just for a chat about our work.  The office address is -

The Old Firestation, Guildhall Road, Penzance and phone number 01736 359052

Support Our Soldiers Sue Robinson
AFTER three years of living in a tiny fishing cottage which was overrun with parcels and goods, the regional organiser of a charity helping the Armed...
www.southwestbusiness.co.uk/.../Overrun.../article.html

http://www.thisiscornwall.co.uk/news/Overrun-charity-delighted-gain-new-home/article-2464945-detail/article.html

Wigan Update

Report from Carol  'The street collection in St Helens on July 3rd went well even though the St Helens festival was going on in another part of town and therefore the town centre was not as busy as usual, we still managed to raise a respectable £395.94p. Thanks to Lesley, Lorraine, Louise, Jane, Janet and Biddy for holding the buckets and keeping a smile on your faces.

We were very much looking forward the Hog Roast and Family Fun Day organised by King’s Church Warrington being held on Great Sankey High School field on July 4th but unfortunately the weather wasn’t kind to us. We struggled in what felt like a force ten gale blowing across the field to get the gazebo up, only for it to be blown over and totally destroyed by the strong winds. There was no way we could continue on such a windy field without some cover so we had to pack everything back into the car and come home. Oh well, maybe next year.

8th July was a very sad day for me. I attended the funeral of Royal Marine Sgt Steven Derbyshire who was killed on June 23rd this year. A very emotional and moving ceremony and the service was relayed outside because the church was full. I was touched by the bravery of his wife, I just don’t know where these young women get their strength from, and I know I couldn’t be so brave. Well done Kate, I am sure Steven is very proud of you.

Saturday July 10th saw us with our parcel collection hats on again. We set up a stall in the sunshine outside Sainsbury in Culcheth near Warrington. This is only a comparatively small Sainsbury’s Store and we were overwhelmed by the generosity of the customers there. Lorraine and I had two new helpers in David and Brian from Standish British Legion and they could not believe how willing people were to dig into their pockets. The gents had to leave just after lunch and they were replaced by my daughter-in-law Alex who was visiting from Bristol (they all get roped in LOL!)  We collected 3 trolley-loads of parcel items as well as £139 in cash donations and £80 in merchandise sales. We also sold another 75 raffle tickets for our Cornwall Holiday Draw.

We had two days on the weekend of 17th & 18th July in Asda St Helens. The support of the shoppers was phenomenal! Over the two days we collected around eight trolley-loads of parcel items. Our boys and girls in Afghanistan are going to be very happy with the results! We also sold a staggering £524 worth of merchandise and around another 50 raffle tickets. A big thank you goes to Lesley and Michelle for all their help. Michelle’s boyfriend Lewis is actually out in Afghanistan at the moment.

Bromsgrove Update

Report from Maria 'On 3rd July Irene and SOS Droitwich held a collection at Morrisons in Droitwich and raised a fantastic amount of £230.00, thank you to the people of Droitwich which is a small town so they did brill.  We had 2 events on Saturday 10th July.  Bromsgrove Carnival and Droitwich Music festival.  Irene was at the music festival in Droitwich with her SOS stall and merchandise and raised £186.00 so well done again to the people of Droitwich.   Darren and Steph kindly ran a tombola at Bromsgrove Carnival and raised a fab amount of £191.00.  This was their first event as part of the Bromsgrove team and they had no help from any old timers so did amazingly well.  Thank you to them both and to all the people of Bromsgrove and Droitwich.'

Thank you to Woodbottom Club Baildon

Report from John in Keighley - 'About three years ago my wife and I met a couple on holiday and became good friends. These people invited us to visit Baildon Woodbottom Social Club. I told the secretary about Support Our Soldiers. He was immediately interested, particularly as his son is in the Paras. The outcome was that the committee agreed to make SOS their next good cause and buckets began appearing on the bar with SOS logo displayed. Members were invited to donate items for the 2009 Christmas appeal. Finally, early in the new year an event was staged and I received a cheque for £500 from Thwaites Brewery. On top of this I have also received an equally generous amount from contributions be the club members, almost £1,000 in total.  Many thanks to staff and members of the club for all their kindness and generosity.

The Camping & Caravanning Club Site, Kingsbury Water Park

Many thanks to Mr & Mrs Thompson of the Camping & Caravanning Site, Kingsbury Water Park who organised a fundraising day on the 26th June and raised the grand total of £56.60 for SOS.  Thank you to everyone who went along on the day and contributed so generously.

21st July - Buttercross Needleworkers, Tickhill

Report from Tracy, Rotherham A/C - 'BUTTERCROSS NEEDLEWORKERS held a Support Our Soldiers Sewing Evening on Wednesday 21st July at the Tickhill Scout & Guide Hall.  Thanks to the Rotherham Advertiser Cool Ties Appeal, Shirley Clapham & the ladies of Tickhill held a marathon session making several hundred ties for our brave soldiers on overseas operations.   I gave an Awareness talk about Support Our Soldiers, giving the ladies more insight to what the Yorkshire based charity is all about.   It was a real pleasure to meet all the ladies and thank them personally for their support.   Many of the Cool ties are already on their way to Afghanistan which should help our brave military in the summer heat.'

17th July - Birkdale Festival

Many thanks to Stephen & Tina - Southport S.O.S  who attended the Birkdale Festival on the 17th July and raised £239.41.  They would like to extend their thanks to everyone who donated so generously, to the Health Food shop for donating samples for the parcels, to Schunanigans for providing shoe boxes and to Match of the Day analyst Mark Lawrenson who joined them on the stall and offered his assistance in the future.

16th, 17th & 18th July - Rebel Smugglers Annual Meet

Sincere thanks to Carol and everyone at Rebel Smugglers who held their Annual Meet over the weekend of the 16th, 17th and 18th July and raised the grand sum of £550 for SOS.  A tremendous result and their efforts very much appreciated.

Rebel Smugglers

14th July - Sutton Police Cadets Cheque Presentation

Many thanks to members of Sutton Police Cadets who very kindly presented a cheque for £125 to SOS at their 5th Annual Review.  The money was raised through a recent rowing event and cake sale. 

Sutton police cadets parade
Your Local Guardian
... a charity providing morale boosting care parcels to Support our Soldiers overseas, after they raised money at a rowing event and cake sale. ...

11th July  - Witham Scooter and Bike Ride

Our thanks to Witham's Victorians Scooter Club and Motorcycle Division who held a ride out between Witham and Colchester in honour of East Anglian Regiments and raised over £2,000 for Forces Charities including SOS -

Scooter and bike ride raises more than £2000
Braintree and Witham Times
Fighting men and women known to Help the Heroes, Support our Soldiers and the Royal British Legion will all benefit from the event, which started at the ...

Coffee Day Celebrations

On 3 July 2010 Craig Howard, Head of Commercial – Support Services at Enterprise who is part of the ‘Croston Reformed Scout Band’ took part in ‘Coffee Day Celebrations’, an annual procession through the village of Croston, Lancashire.

Each year they choose a charity to raise money for and this year they chose to support SOS. Together they raised a fantastic £360.  A wonderful amount and our thanks go out to Craig and everyone who took part.

June 2010

Ysgol y Gwendraeth Welsh Baccalaureate – Community Participation

Our sincere thanks to staff and pupils at Ysgol y Gwendraeth, Llanelli who very kindly chose to support SOS as part of their community participation.  This is the report from form tutor Karen MacDonald and many thanks to her for all her efforts -  

'After a viewing a moving power point presentation about our soldiers at war during an assembly, 10W decided they wanted to support the soldiers in any way they could. As part of their Welsh Baccalaureate qualification, they need to participate in 15 hours of community work. The pupils decided to put their energy into planning and organising a fund raising campaign to raise money for ‘Support our Soldiers’. Alongside this, they wanted to make handmade cards, and collect shoeboxes full of supplies to send to the soldiers. They also collected used stamps for the appeal.

The fund raising activities included selling cakes, toast and handmade bracelets, holding a ‘Guess the teddy’s name’ competition and ‘Guess the baby’ competition. They also washed staff cars. Some of the pupils visited local shops asking if they would like to donate to this good cause and all were happy to help.

Our school is a small community school with 400 pupils. We are down to approximately 320 pupils at the moment as year 11 have just left after sitting their exams. The response we had was amazing! We managed to raise approximately 200 pounds in just 3 days. 100 pounds of this money is being donated to the Welsh Guards ‘Arm and a Leg’ appeal and 100 pounds to SOS.

We managed to make about 30 handmade cards, collected used stamps and collected items to make 40 shoeboxes for the shoe box appeal.

We are honoured to have been associated with your appeal and appreciate what the soldiers are doing for our country.'

Many Thanks...

Many thanks to the following for their kind donations of parcels, messages of support, get well cards or cool ties - Eileen Check, Mr & Mrs Macalinay, Mr & Mrs Birnie, J Wortley, Alastair Redman and customers at Portnahaven stores Islay, C Last, Audrey Gates, C Bone, A Middleton, Elaine & Mike from Derby, Caroline, Miss Y Ainley, Mrs Torville, Carole Patterson, Continental Chef Supplies South Hetton, A Lecas, Jeanette Obermiller USA, Aimee & Carl Lucas, Dawn Bibby Design Studio, Mrs M O'Connor, Florence, Nick, Martina (age 2) and Georgina (age 1) Brockleston, Ann WInstanley, Teresa Standen, Adel Little, Tracy Hill, Kate & Dave, Lynda Finn, Margaret Turville, Jan Fry, Cheryl Balmbra, Rose & Pete Watkins, Lawrence, Judith, Lynda Banks, E Hammerton, Kuckarslan Family, Tony & June Richardson, Peter Hall, Len & Martin Los, Jess Woodhams, Gary Duggan, Debbie and Enterprise.

Sunday 27th June - Badlanders Armed Forces Day Event

Many thanks to Badlanders MCC who organised a huge event in Bents Park, South Shields to mark Armed Forces Day.  Full report to follow...

These bikers are born to be kind!
Shields Gazette
The bikers set up camp in Bents Park for the day to host an event to raise thousands of pounds for the Support Our Soldiers...

Sunday 27th June - Royal Dragoon Guards Family Fun Day

Peter Bond our representative from Exeter kindly provided Yorkshire Tea for the day and a number of sports items.  Over 450 family members turned out, in glorious weather and a great day was had by all.  The RDG Welfare Team expressed their thanks to Peter for all his support.

Armed Forces Day

Events took place across the UK to mark Armed Forces Day, a wonderful weekend enjoyed by all who took part.  Rachel & Glyn were in Cardiff where the National celebrations took place.  They had a brilliant day, glorious weather and a great turnout.  Lots of people expressed an interest in the work of SOS and the grand total of £686.26 was raised. Thank you to the people of Cardiff of visitors for making Rachel and Glyn's first event such a huge success.

Stephen and Tina were at the Tesco Store in Kew, Southport, also the first event for them.  This is their report - 'The people of Southport were very generous, as we raised the sum of £319.47 for the Appeal during the few hours we were at the store, with people buying key fobs, badges and wrist bands as they showed interest in what the Charity is all about, where the monies go, and what we do with the shoe boxes/comfort packs, and where they are sent. We were lucky to have our local MP John Pugh, show his support by calling into the store, he was completely interested in the Charity and the work being done, thanking us for all our hard work on behalf to our Troops in Afghanistan.

Well known TV personality and International Clairvoyant, Derek Acorah, also showed his support for the Appeal, and he too thanked us for the work we are doing for the SOS Appeal. Local resident, Colin Hughes (Piper), called into the store after taking part in the Armed Forces Day Parade in Southport, and was thrilled to see us there collecting for the Appeal.  Finally, we wish to thank everyone at Tesco's for their help and support, making us feel welcome in the store.

Stephen & Tina with John Pugh                 Tina with Colin Hughes (Piper)

                  MP for Southport

Tina with Derek Acorah

http://www.southportreporter.com/454/454-13.shtml

http://www.southportreporter.com/454/454-10-10.shtml

Yorkshire Regiment Freedom Parades

Crowds turned out to honour members of the Yorkshire Regiment as they took part in parades across the region.  The picture below show's Tracy's mum Mrs Brenda Harwood cheering the boys and girls along the way!

Saturday 19th June - SOS Awareness Event Swinton Co-Op

Report from Tracy - Swinton Co-Op supermarket on Station Street Swinton, Mexborough, hosted an Support Our Soldiers Awareness Event to raise money for the national registered charity to continue with our support of British soldiers overseas & military families at home.   Steve Craft, Co-Op Duty Manager, staff and customers showed their support for the appeal by donatining items for care packages, donating monies and purchasing SOS merchandise.   Tracy Mounsey the Rotherham Volunteer Area Co-ordinator along with SOS Volunteer helpers Steve Mounsey & Sarah Mullins raised a fantastic £340.50 for the charity. This will enable me to continue posting out 30-50 care packages a month to serving soldiers presently on overseas operations.   We had a really productive day, speaking to serving military, military veterans and many soldiers families we help raise awareness for the charity along with the continuing support from the generous people of Rotherham and the surrounding areas.  Thank You Swinton Co-Op and the people of Swinton.

Northumberland Update

Our sincere thanks to members of North Seaton Community Centre Association Tea Dance Club who organised a day trip and raffle and very kindly donated the proceeds of £100 to our Morpeth representatives Glenn & Elaine.  A great effort very much appreciated!

Thursday 17th June - Funeral of Gnr Zak Cusack

Today the funeral of fallen hero Gnr Zak Cusack will take place at St Saviour's Church, Smallthorne. Since Zak's death on the 26th May his family and friends have shown remarkable strength and, as you'll see from the article below, even organised a football match to help other Servicemen and women.  Our thoughts and prayers are with them today, especially Tracey, Dave, Sean and Sandra. May Zak rest in peace now, in our hearts forever.

Friends of Afghanistan hero Zak Cusack play charity football match
Stoke & Staffordshire
The money raised will go to charities Help For Heroes and Support Our Soldiers. The football match will now become an annual event to honour Zak's memory

Hundreds line streets to mourn soldier Zak Cusack after Afghan death
Stoke & Staffordshire
... Longton High School pupil, along with two other soldiers killed in Afghanistan. ... through her work with the forces charity Support Our Soldiers (SOS), ...

Thank You Clap-Banner©

Many thanks to Mark and Carolyn Israel who have very kindly donated 500 England World Cup Clap-Banners© for our boys and girls in Afghanistan 'as a matter of appreciation for all their bravery and hard work'   We're sure the banners will go down a storm!  For more information about the banners visit www.clap-banner.com

Armed Forces Day Discount from the Science Museum London

As the nation shows their support for those who make up the Armed Forces community, the Science Museum will be acknowledging the special day with a week long promotion for servicemen/women and their families.  The Science Museum will be offering servicemen/women and their families half-price entry to the Museum’s IMAX 3D Cinema from 20 June (Father’s Day) until 2 7 June.

The offer will be open to all servicemen/women, whether part of the Royal Navy, British Army or Royal Air Force, and also to veterans. Upon showing a service card, you will be able to get half-price tickets on adult, child and family tickets. Where a serviceman/woman is not present, the families will be able to receive the discount if they have dependency passes but identity is required.

Films showing include Hubble 3D, Fly Me To The Moon 3D and Deep Sea 3D.  For further information visit www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/imax or call 0870 870 4868. Please note that tickets cannot be pre-booked with this promotion but must be purchased at Science Museum sales desks. The Museum can be very busy at weekends so please bear in mind that shows are subject to availability and should preferably be booked at sales desks for the desired film upon arrival.

Skipton Working Men's Club

Our sincere thanks to members and staff at Skipton Working Men's Club who held a fundraising evening for Support Our Soldiers and raised the grand sum of £765.  A cheque was presented to John, our representative for Keighley and Skipton who also gave a short talk about the work of SOS. Special mention to Mr Reid who organised the evening and to everyone who gave so generously.

Saturday 12th June - SOS Rotherham Team at Tesco Dinnington

Report from Tracy - 'Tesco - Dinnington hosted our very first superstore event in support of SOS on Saturday 12th June on Outgang land Dinnington.  Everyone was in a patriotic mood due to England playing later in the day.   We had a great time meeting lots of shoppers who showed real enthusiasm for our appeal.  We spoke to serving military who took leaflets and said they would pass SOS details on to their colleagues, we met military veterans from all the forces, and spoke to family members of serving soldiers.   The merchandise was selling like hot cakes, our care package trolley was half full and the 3 collection tubs were bursting at the seams.  We raised a combined total of £483.13......fantastic   Thanks to Tracy & Alex of TESCO our first superstore SOS experience was a HUGE success.'

   Tracy, Sarah and Tracy from Tesco               Tracy, Steve and Sarah

May 2010

Saturday 29th May - B&M Homestore Nuneaton

Report from Liz - ' Although it was raining we had tremendous support from the shoppers who donated a trolley full of items for care parcels. £78.58 was donated in cash and my daughter Rebecca raised another £36.70 with her teddy Tombola. Thanks to Michelle and the staff at B & M. Thank you to Sue Vick who came to see us and left me with a bag full of items for parcels. Special thanks to Melanie and all the residents of Sunnyside Court (sheltered housing) who came together and filled nine shoeboxes full of fantastic goodies. Now planning the next event, look out for more news soon. Liz  Nuneaton'

Operation Red Rose

Earlier in the month it was our priviledge to send a batch of parcels out to members of 1 Lancs who had recently deployed to Afghanistan.  Today we've received a lovely email from one of their senior officers letting us know just how much the parcels have been appreciated...

'I apologise for not being in touch earlier but this has been a busy period for the Lancs battle group and I have been out and about to the locations were the lads are.  Unfortunately the have very little in the way of mod cons no internet, little power no cold water, so anything that is sent is very much appreciated. I understand that in most cases its a thankless task and am glad that people in the  UK are supporting us in what we are doing. From the Lancs lads and lasses many thanks for all your support.'

Well Done Alex!

Many thanks to Alex Windram aged 8 who heard about our stamp appeal when her mum joined SOS to support her cousin on his tour to Afghan, Alex decided to tell her frinds at school and brownies and after getting a positive response from the wrote to the local newspaper, following them printing Alex's letter the newspaper were innundated with people wanting to know more and so they ran a full page story, amonsgt those wanting to support Alex were 500 ! Royal Mail workers so looks like we have our work cut out and hopefully Joy has plenty of storage space! Very well done Alex, what a star x  See the press report - This is Leicestershire

Falkirk Boys Brigade

Our sincere thanks to Falkirk Boys Brigade who held a collection for SOS at their recent Awards Evening and raised the wonderful sum of £155. 4th Falkirk BB is based in Hallglen and raised the money during their Awards night where the Rev David Anderson from Black Watch was their special guest. David presented the top awards to Jamie Bowman, Greg Neary, Dale Maxwell and Alex Walker. Many congratulations to the boys for their wonderful achievements.

In The Press...

A Halsall couple have been made area co-ordinators for a charity ...
Ormskirk & Skelmersdale Advertiser
... organisers Stephen and Tina Parfitt will continue to raise awareness of the Support Our Soldiers charity, which sends parcels to servicemen and women. ...

Support Our Soldiers Falkirk | BlogsToday |
What can I say but BIG THANKYOU to the kindhearted people of Falkirk after becoming involved with the charity Support Our Soldiers many of you have handed ...

Church Cancels Services to Help Community
AboutMyArea
The morale-boosting care parcels were sent as part of the Support Our Soldiers campaign. Worshippers also put together 50 care kits for those who are ...

Ready to ride for heroes
Braintree and Witham Times
... for the Royal British Legion, Help for Heroes and Support Our Soldiers. ... we all need to support our boys that are out there,” said Mr Dillard, 45. ...

22nd May 2010 - Coffee Morning at Head Office

Our coffee morning held on Saturday, perhaps the hottest day of the year so far, raised the grand sum of £559.  Many thanks to everyone who came along despite the weather and donated so generously.  Our sincere thanks too to all our wonderful volunteers without whom the day would not have been possible and to members of Bingley Army Cadets for all their support.  Special thanks too to Anita Dickerson who wore her bright pink 'Hannah Montana' wig and raised a further £66 through sponsorship from family and friends.

20th May 2010 - Enterprise CR Awards Presentation Evening

It was a pleasure to be invited to the recent Enterprise Awards Evening in Manchester and to speak about the work of SOS.  Neil Kirkby, CEO of Enterprise, very kindly presented us with a cheque for £5,000 and a further £1,693 was raised from the raffle which was tremendous.  Our sincere thanks to Neil and to everyone at Enterprise for their generosity and support since January.  Huge thanks too to Rachel and Kelly for all their help and for organising such a wonderful evening. 

Saturday 7th May - Welcome Home Matthew and 3 Rifles BG

A big welcome home to Steve's son Matthew and all members of 3 Rifles BG returned from their tour of Afghanistan.  On the 7th May they marched through Edinburgh where hundreds turned out to show their support.

Matthew and dad Steve share a welcome home drink!

BBC News - Three Rifles Homecoming parade in Edinburgh The Three Rifles battlegroup have returned to Edinburgh and marched through the City for their homecoming parade

Saturday 7th May - Tesco's North Harbour Portsmouth

Lynn our representative from Portsmouth had a fundraising day at Tescos and raised the grand total of £283.42.  Many thanks to everyone who contributed so generously and to staff at Tesco for their hospitality..

In The Press...

Family fun event marks 65th anniversary of VE Day
Lancashire Evening Post
Support Our Soldiers ran a tombola and stall during the day and the British Legion also had a stall. Money was raised for Derian House Children's Hospice, ...

St Faith's Great Crosby offers support to service families
Click Liverpool
Regular servicemen, TA and ex-service personnel, Air cadets, members of SSAFA, Support Our Soldiers Charity, people from other churches, family members, ...

Up for the challenge
The Star
To sponsor Maj Osborne and his team, visit www.justgiving.com/Carol-King or send donations to Support Our Soldiers area co-ordinator Carol King, ...

7th May 2010 - Congratulations David and Sacha

Many SOS congratulations to Mary's son David and his new wife Sacha who celebrated their wedding on the 7th May.  Both David and Sacha are serving soldiers, Sacha recently having returned from a tour of Afghanistan and David to deploy shortly.  Wishing them all the very best in their future life together.

6th May 2010 - Prince of Wales Pub, Eccleshill Cheque Presentation

Following the fundraising evening in March we were delighted to be invited back to the Prince Of Wales pub in Eccleshill where a cheque for £2,041 was presented to us. An absolutely tremendous result and we really can't sufficiently thank Trevor and Leigh, Caroline and Peter and everyone who contributed so generously for this magnificent effort.

War Heros Grave

Thanks to Charles in Holland who is a keen supporter of SOS, the marvellous efforts of Tiny Claessen have finally been recognised.  For 45 years Tiny has lovingly tended the grave of Flight Sergeant Henry Hiscox who died in a Second World War bombing raid over Holland.  On the 65th anniversary of Holland's liberation Tiny was visited by war veteran Air Commodore Charles Clarke OBE and presented with a photo of a Lancaster Bomber signed by all the veterans.  Tiny said ' "He gave his life so people like me could live free and happy. It was the right thing that he should be respected and remembered.'
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/campaigns/our_boys/2972414/Woman-spent-45-years-caring-grave-of-hero-British-airman.html

Leicester Update

Report from Amanda - 'Our families group continues to go from strength to strength as word gets out and as well as offering socialising and support to many families with family in the Forces and those deployed we have also been able to help many Veterans and Ex-Service persons by pointing them in the right direction towards assistance they have needed. Our SOS team here in Leicester have been out and about as always giving presentations to various groups in schools, guides, WI's about the work of SOS and supporting the troops, this has resulted in lots  (100's ! ) of donations and parcels and I would like to thank the following for their contributions - Fairfield Community Primary School, Tanya (plus wipes), Corby N'hants RBL,  Rothly/Mountsorrel Restuk.  Thanks also go to my team here - Dee, Paul, Padre Tony Coslett, Roger M, Mandy for all they are doing, and also to Alex Windram aged 8, who has the makings of a fab A/C with all her work especially in the stamp collecting department. And to the AFCO in Leicester for the storage space and AFCO Notts for the transporting of parcels, we have tremendous support here from these guys.   Keep looking on the events page and also SOS leicestershire on FB to see where and what we are up to at local events.  Amanda'

April 2010

Lee Hangar Runs Hastings Half Marathon for SOS

May we extend our sincere thanks to Lee Hanger who took part in the Hastings Half Marathon in March and raised the tremenous sum of £1,034.50 for SOS.  A wonderful effort very much appreciated. Sincere thanks too to everyone who sponsored Lee so generously. 

SOS Stirling in the News

25th April - Mascot Gold Cup Wetherby Races

Many thanks to Debbie Davies, wife of local MP Philip Davies, who took part in the Mascot Gold Cup as The Galloping Major and raised a wonderful £326 for SOS.  The event, organised by Sue Ryder Care and Yorkshire Young Farmers, raised over £15,000 in total for the various charities supported by the 'runners'.  May we also offer our thanks to Ladies In Waiting of Ilkley who very kindly sponsored Debbie's costume. Mascot Gold Cup

12th April 2010 - HEROtsc Awareness Event

Report from Tracy - SOS Rotherham - "The Support Our Soldiers Awareness fundraiser was held at HEROtsc on Monday 12th April 2010. As anticipated, it was a great success.   Dawn Cassidy continued with her support and enthusiasm for SOS   The event included a SOS Awareness stall, tombola, cake stall (donated by Woodward’s) & Name the Teddy.

Total raised on the day was a fantastic £349.99 that will enable usto continue with our support of our soldiers. Special thanks go to HEROtsc for hosting the event, to Dawn, Kath, Kieran, John, Chris, Phil, Tracey, Jean, Jackie & Lynn, SOS volunteer helper Shelly Harrison.

Thanks also go to Captain Rogers, WO2 Maycock, WO2 Braisby & Sgt. Beaumont of 146 Fd Coy REME (V) Rotherham, not only did they attend and support the event but also brought along donated items for the care packages.

Our Sincere Thanks to...

Can we say a very big thank you to everyone who's so kindly sent parcels, parcel fillers, messages of support, get well cards and cool ties over the past few weeks - Dorothy Burton, Alastair Redman and customers at Portnahaven Stores, Islay, Helen Cardwell, Claire Burrage, Roo Douglas, Bywater, Olive Prewer, James Sutherland Natwest, Emma Pannell, D Rowlands, Tracey Devine, Carol & Rusty, D Andrews, Samantha Haynes, John and Coral Fenton, Kath Drake, A Matalot, Home Office London, Catherine Prosser & Sharron Kearnes, Anne Hallsworth, Lyon Castle, Catherine Creedon, The lads at A8's Club 238 RLC Bootle and 165 Port RLC Marchwood, Marc Dyson, Mrs D Andrews, Lynda Banks, Aimee & Carl, Helen, Mr J Leadley, Corinna Last, Audrey Gates, Jan Lay, Suzanne McCreedy, Mrs M Stephenson, St Anns Church Coffee Morning Group, Andrew Low, Dianne Carvill, Eileen Cheek, Stewart, Jenefer Wilson, D Perrott, Ellen Robbins, Janet Robinson, Rhiannon Hall, Laura Meisert USA, Mrs H Birnie, Jane Stead, Mr & Mrs B Hicks, Jill Furlong, Norma Willoughby, Adel Little, The Brennalls, Katie & Avril Bell, Laura Davis, Telscombe Cliffs WI, Ann Winstanley, Corinna Francis and Jo and the T3 Team Future PLC.  Their support, and in many cases, continued support really is much appreciated. 

Special mentions to Paccar Scout Camp Chalfont St Giles who delivered 135 beautifully made up parcels to Head Office, West Craven High Technology College Barnoldswick for their many boxes and parcel fillers (which were planned to be Christmas parcels but delayed due to adverse weather conditions!), Royal Mail Bradford for over 40 parcels and all their efforts in fundraising and selling merchandise, Mossley House for 85 parcels and The Princes Trust Team - Louis, Joseph, Leigh, Amy, Emma, Natasha, Abby, Daniel and Josh for 37 parcels.

Pupils at West Craven High Technology College Barnoldswick

In The Press...

NORTHLONDON TODAY | NEWS | Soldiers take time to send thanks for ...
More than 250 packages have now been sent by Support Our Soldiers which operates from the Enfield Royal British Legion in the Old Fire Station ...

Redditch man embarks on gruelling challenge
Redditch Advertiser
Steve Haresnape from Riverside will be walking the length of Britain from John O'Groats to Land's End to raise cash for Support our Soldiers and the ...

Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors can today reveal that the charities Help for Heroes, the Army Benevolent Fund and Support Our Soldiers are set to benefit from the St ...

Soldier in Three Peaks Challenge
Wigan Today
She said: "The aim of Support Our Soldiers is to provide support for our serving men and women and their families at home...

Portsmouth Update

Many thanks to Lynn and her team in Portsmouth for all their efforts in April.  A Care Parcel Event at Morrisons Horndean on the 19th and 20th April generated  4 trolleys of shopping and £327.87.  The collection at Asda Waterlooville on the 23rd and 24th April raised a further trolley load of shopping and £314.29.  A great effort and thank you to customers and staff at both stores for their generosity.

Congratulations to Pte Alex Kennedy!

Many congratulations to 18 year old Pte Alex Kennedy who has become the youngest Military Cross Winner since World War 2.  Brave Alex from Bromsgrove, who had been in the Army for just eight months, put himself in the line of fire to rescue his Commanding Officer. Alex's mum said 'I was so much in shock when I heard that news that Maria from Support Our Soldiers who had been sending parcels to Alex during his tour came round to comfort me'.  Again many congratulations Alex we're all very proud of you indeed.

Report from the Mirror    Report from The Sun

Bromsgrove Standard

David Lloyd Fitness Team Raise Nearly £4,000!

Our sincere thanks to the rowing team at David Lloyd Fitness in Bromsgrove who rowed for 14 hours non stop for SOS and raised the magnificent sum of nearly £4,000.  The team rowed more than 600 miles, equivalent to rowing from Bromsgrove to Glasgow and back.  Many thanks to the team - Trevor Rice, Andy Wagg, Steve Hogan, Nicky Pullen, Sue Turner, Paul Taft, Chris Harrison, Liz Green, Kim Edmunds, Amanda Maughan-Wilson, Becky Johnson and Ian Northolt and to everyone who gave so generously.

Bromsgrove rowing team participate in charity challenge
Bromsgrove Advertiser
The indoor rowing team at David Lloyd Fitness Club, in Slideslow Drive, rowed for 14 hours non stop, in teams of two, for the Support Our Soldiers charity. ...

Friday 2nd to Monday 5th April - East Leeds Lions Rally

Despite the cold, wind and rain we had a wonderful time at the East Leeds Lions Rally and thanks to everyone's generosity raised the grand sum of £648.21.  As always the biking community made us very welcome and we really can't thank them enough for all their support. 

East Leeds Lions MCC Website

Saturday 3rd April - SOS Pyjama Party - Lord Barrington, Stakeford 

Report from Glenn & Elaine - 'We all had a fantastic night on Easter Saturday at the Pyjama Party and our sincere thanks to Lucy for her hard work organising it.  Thanks also to Leslie for collecting donations and gifts from the local shops, the bar staff, and to everyone who came along.  Their generosity and support, as always, is very much appreciated.  Sincere thanks to Chic Hair and Beauty, Chisolm Bookmakers, Londis, Christine, Pampered Pooches, JH Pearson, Allsorts, 2 B Celebrated, The Fruit Shop and Boots, who all donated prizes.  We raised the massive sum of £424.41 through the sale of merchandise, a raffle, tombola, domino cards, bbq and donations.  Thanks to everyone for their continued support - and a special mention to Owen (Lucy`s son) who worked very hard on the night for us.  Glenn and Elaine'

Thursday 1st and Friday 2nd April - Morrisons Keighley

Anita, David, Jennifer and Fred manned the SOS Stall at Morrisons, Keighley store and raised the wonderful sum of £701.50 through merchandise sales and £583.83 in donations.  Our very grateful thanks to them and to all customers who gave so generously.

Thanks to CPC Computers Preston

Many thanks to CPC Computers in Preston who have very kindly donated mini pc hoovers for sending out to the lads - as requested to keep their computers free of sand!  Thank you too to Brian for organising this.

Thanks to ready steady store Worsley

Our sincere thanks to ready steady store who have offered free storage space and to act as a collection point for future appeals at their East Lancashire Road facility.  Sharron our coordinator for the Manchester/Bolton area said ‘ready steady store in Worsley has been tremendous, looking after Support our Soldiers local interests with care and professionalism, and we are extremely grateful for all their assistance.'

March 2010

Saturday 20th March 2010 - SOS 7th Anniversary Charity Ball

Over 150 guests attended our ball at the Queen's Hotel in Leeds on the 20th March and a wonderful time was had by all.  Great location, great food, great company and a great band all contributed towards a thoroughly enjoyable evening. 

We were delighted to have as our guests the Deputy Lord Mayor and Deputy Lady Mayoress of Leeds and our sincere thanks to them for taking time out of their busy schedule to attend.  It was also our pleasure to be joined by Colonel Jefferson and QM Edwards who were with us seven years ago at the launch of SOS. It was a real pleasure to meet with them once again.

It was a great pleasure to welcome Sgt Cartwright of 2 Yorks as our guest speaker. We're very grateful to him for giving our guests a greater insight into life on the frontline in Afghanistan and for confirming just how much support from the public means to the boys and girls.

Our sincere thanks to Enterprise, Royal Mail and Millennium for their kindness in sponsoring the evening.  To those who provided gifts for our raffle and auction including the Conservative Party, Peter Andre, Preston North End FC, the Queen's Hotel, Cllr David Heseltine, Cllr Robin Owens, Smith & Canova, Toni & Guy Leeds, La Tasca Leeds, Mirror Mirror Bingley, Green's Health & Fitness and Premier Cru Fine Wine Ltd. To Towler & Staines for kindly donating the yellow balloons, to Matt Ward of VM Lounge for table decorations, and to Art Display Bingley for all their help with advertising material. The raffle raised £400 and the bottle of Whiskey signed by David Cameron kindly donated by Philip Davies, MP Shipley, a further £50.

Further thanks go to our band Crescendo who really made the evening go with a swing.  There wasn't a moment whilst they were playing that there wasn't a person on the dance floor, so many thanks to them one and all.

And finally sincere thanks to all our guests who travelled from across the UK, Aberdeen to Penzance, to be with us. We hope you all enjoyed it as much as we did and looking forward to next year...!

More pictures on Facebook

Sunday 14th March - Mother's Day run for SOS

Many thanks to Dawn, Martin and members of Pyeratz MCC who organised a Mother's Day run for Support Our Soldiers from Squires Cafe in Sherburn in Elmet to the Armouries in Leeds.  The response was tremendous and our sincere thanks to all the local MC Clubs who turned up to support the event.  Our stall at Squires Cafe raised a grand total of  £718.03.  Many thanks to Jason at Squires for all his hospitality and to everyone who attended the run and gave so generously.

YouTube - Wootton Bassett
queueWootton Bassett Mothers Day Bikers Event 2010.9919 viewsBritsNationalPeople · Support our Soldiers Run 2010 wootton Bassett support run 3:45 ...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qXk9ZET1zI&feature...

In The Press...

Home comforts sent out to our soldiers | Scunthorpe Evening ...
Riddings Infant And Nursery School took part in the Support Our Soldiers Shoebox Appeal, which is a registered charity. A spokeswoman for the school said: ...

Troops Get Boost from King Kong & Friends! - Birmingham Mail ...
By Paul Birch
THE COMIC Book Alliance (CBA) is joining with the 'Support Our Soldiers' charity to send thousands of comic books and graphic novels to troops stationed around the world and many miles from home. The CBA spoke to troops before Christmas ...

Drop-in day for families of military | Leicester African Carribean ...
By admin
The Forces Family Social Group is being launched by Amanda Crowden, who is the Leicestershire representative for Support our Soldiers. She plans to set up regular meetings on weekday evenings for the parents, grandparents, siblings...

Mother of serviceman looks to support soldiers
She also noted how she has been assisting the local Support Our Soldiers co- ordinator: "I help with the wrapping of the boxes that get sent to Afghanistan. ...

Well Done Cameron!

Huge congratulations and thanks go to 11 year old Cameron Barrett who has won the Young Brummie of the year award for his work for SOS. Over the past year Cameron has organised a host of events to raise cash and awareness and we really can't thank him enough for all his wonderful efforts.  Well done Cameron!

Wool for Support Our Soldiers Easter Chicks

Our sincere thanks to James C Brett of Bingley who kindly donated 30 balls of wool for our Easter chicks. 

Sincere thanks too to our wonderful team of knitters who between them have knitted over 300 chicks for the Easter parcels!  Don't they look fab!

Jennings Funeral Directors

Many thanks to Jennings Funeral Directors in Wolverhampton who have chosen SOS as their Charity of the Year 2010.  This is a wonderful gesture and very much appreciated.  Jennings are also promoting the Stamp Appeal in the community and have received an overwhelming response.  Many thanks to Angie for all her efforts with this and to everyone joining in the Appeal.

Saturday 6th March - SOS Coffee Morning Great Bentley Village Hall

Our sincere thanks to Judy and Alan Bishop who held a coffee morning at Great Bentley Village Hall and raised the fantastic sum of over £700 through a raffle, tombola, book stall, name the dog, refreshments and the sale of Judy's home made cakes.  We know that Judy had been baking non stop in preparation for the event so our sincere thanks to her and to everyone who went along on the day and gave their support.

Saturday 6th March - Fundraiser Prince of Wales Pub Eccleshill

A fantastic day was had by all at the SOS Fundraiser held at the Prince of Wales pub in Eccleshil, Bradford which included children's rides, stalls, live band, free supper and a grand raffle.  Our sincere thanks to Leigh and Trevor, Caroline, Peter and Chris for all their wonderful efforts in organising this and to their customers and staff for their kind and very generous support.  The total raised will be announce shortly.

Comic Book Alliance sends comics to the Troops

The Comic Book Alliance has joined with Support Our Soldiers to send thousands of comic books and graphic novels to troops stationed around the world and many miles from home.... Comic Book Alliance 

Our sincere thanks to Markosia and Forbidden Planet for their kind donations, to the Royal Mail for their help with deliveries and to GM Jordan, co-founder of the Comic Book Alliance for his wonderful efforts in coordinating the appeal.

Mile End Women's Institute Colchester

Many thanks to the ladies of the Mile End WI in Colchester who raised the grand total of £210 for SOS through the Waitrose charity scheme.  We are extremely grateful for the continuing support from Mile End WI and may we add special thanks to President Avril Taylor who has been instrumental in not only organising this donation but also in organising collections of goods from Tesco, Asda and the Co-Op in Colchester.  Everyone's tremendous efforts and generosity are very much appreciated.

Book Donation from Square-Enix Europe

Square-Enix Europe have very kindly donated over 700 copies of their Soldier Slang of WWII book Fubar to be sent out to the Troops in Afghanistan.  Many thanks to Square-Enix Europe and to Charlotte for all her assistance with this wonderful donation. Fubar - Soldier Slang of World War II

February 2010

Pictures from the Frontline

These fabulous pictures were sent through to Irene by members of 104 ES Bn REME who had asked her to send over an SOS banner...!!

Saturday 27th February - Charity Ball

Our sincere thanks to Barry Halliday, family, friends and associates who organised the charity ball on the 27th February and raised the amazing sum of £1,020.  We are truly graterful for all their wonderful efforts.  This is Barry's report -

'The ball took place at the Six Hills Hotel (A46) Leicestershire 27th Feb.  the night went very well with 80 people in attendance, food and drink flowed with ease , the comedian Mr. Mark Rough was a star he entertained us all for 40 mins.with a selection of lets say “the color blue” gags. The Raffle, Auction and donations raised £1020 on the night; four serving personnel from the Animal Defence Centre were guests of honor and I am told had a great time. Many thanks to all family, friends and company’s that donated prize’s and cash for the night. As you can see by the photo’s a merry time was had by all'

Saturday 27th February 2010 - Coffee Morning SOS HQ

The coffee morning held at SOS HQ in Bingley raised the grand sum of £938!  Many, many thanks to everyone who came along and supported us on the day, to our wonderful team of volunteers who worked so hard to make the event a success, and to local businesses including Luscombes of Queen's Court and Mirror Mirror for their kindness in supplying tombola prizes.

In the Press

Salfordonline News
Parcels from home: Support our Soldiers. by Tom Rodgers Sharron Thomas is the local organiser for Support Our Soldiers, a charity sending care packages to troops fighting overseas. It's a vital service: some of the men and women serving ...

Mother of serviceman looks to support soldiers
She also noted how she has been assisting the local Support Our Soldiers co- ordinator: "I help with the wrapping of the boxes that get sent to Afghanistan. ...

Mother, 23, gets behind our troops with SOS campaign
Amy Smith works for the Support Our Soldiers charity which sends welfare packages to troops serving in war zones like Afghanistan. The 23-year-old's own family has military connections. Her mum Lyn served in the Army and her dad Colin ...

'Oar-some' marathon
Bromsgrove Advertiser
Rowing: A TEAM from a Bromsgrove-based leisure centre is taking part in a charity row for the Support Our Soldiers charity. Members of DLC Bromsgrove, ...

Helensburgh barber's snip for charity
Helensburgh Advertiser
Cash raised through the scheme will be given to Support our Soldiers. Greg said: "We estimate that this could create income for the charity to the tune of ...

Soldiers thank Brownies for gifts
Shields Gazette
But this Christmas, Brownie leaders decided to support the SOS Shoebox Appeal after seeing how the Support Our Soldiers charity had been sending packages to ...

Manchester City football club charity charities donation new ...
This season we've supported more than 300 different charities and organisations including: Support Our Soldiers, The Harley Slack Fund, Christies, North West Air Ambulance, Derian House Children's Hospice and numerous local football ...

Support our Soldiers brings Christmas cheer - Buchan Observer
FOLLOWING its launch last November , Support Our Soldier's Christmas parcel appeal has proven more popular than ...

Bromsgrove rowers take on charity challenge
Bromsgrove Advertiser
“This is all in aid of Support Our Soldiers so please donate generously. SOS send items that the troops really want and need. “Two years ago it was tough, ...

Rowers attempt oar-some SOS task
Bromsgrove Standard
... call Ian on 07939 175505. Cash can be donated at: www.justgiving.com/DLCBromsgrove. For more on Support Our Soldiers, call Maria on 07851 275711.

Fighting chance for forces families as support group set up ...
Since Karen Webster helped set up Support Our Soldiers (SOS) in 2003 after her son was deployed to Iraq the organisation has provided support for members of ...

Soldiers' memorial gets SOS support
Worcester Standard
The Worcestershire branch of Support our Soldiers (SOS) is in favour of a planned plaque and book of remembrance which would sit in the reception ...

Praise for forces organisation as wounded East Yorkshire hero Ben ...
The Press, York
The group is open to the relatives of service personnel and is the brainchild of the charity Support Our Soldiers. Rebecca, of Bishopthorpe, has told ...

Support our Soldiers spreads its message
A WOMAN who has campaigned tirelessly to set up networks to help families of Scottish soldiers serving overseas last night spoke of the importance of ...

Support our Soldiers spreads its message Press & Journal
Debra Milburn is the northeast of Scotland coordinator for Support our Soldiers, an organisation which has been active in the UK for several years but ...

Free Flowers For A Year Help Send Care Packages To Deployed Troops
PRLog.Org (press release)
“We send boxes every month to let our soldiers know we haven't forgotten them, ... worth of flowers for free and help support our soldiers at the same time? ...

Iraq to Afghanistan for Lancashire woman
Lancashire Evening Post
... and everyone out there has to pull together to get through whatever comes our way. ... for their country and to support our soldiers out on operations. ...

Coldstream Guards march through York on way to London
The Press, York
... Families support group, open to anyone with a loved one serving in the armed forces, is being launched in York by the charity Support Our Soldiers. ...

Keep the cold out with winter ale festival in Redditch
Redditch Advertiser
The Redditch Winter Ale Festival charity will be Support Our Soldiers (SOS). A full range of other drinks and food, including soft drinks, ...

Broch OAP's gift to soldiers
Press and Journal
Violet Sanderson, of Strichen Road, gave the cash to the charity Support our Soldiers, which helps British troops serving overseas, because they “do such a ...

Combat Survival - 40 Commando Feature

Congratulations to Mary's nephew Daniel who featured on the front cover of the Combat Survival February Issue.  See more on the Combat Survival website

January 2010

Saturday 2nd January - Fundraising evening Catshill Social Club

The Social Evening in aid of SOS which was held at Catshill Social Club on Saturday January 2nd raised a fantastic £1000.00. Just over £950.00 was collected on the night which featured Abbey Road, a Beatles tribute band, a quiz and a raffle.  The clubs steward Sam Bissel then made the money to a round £1000.00.   Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion Mercian Regiment who had recently returned from Afghanistan attended and Sergeant Adam Townsend spoke about how  much SOS meant to those deployed in the war zone and asked that the public continue to support us. Bob Jordon who is the clubs entertainments secretary was delighted with the evening, it was his first big event and he is iver the moon.  Both the band and the response was awesome especially as it was the day after new years day.  Bob said " I would like to thank everyone who donated prizes and all those who came along and made the evening such a great success for such a good cause".  Our sincere thanks to everyone involved.

Thanks to Gareth Nelson

Gareth Nelson, from Newbiggin by the Sea, won a Health & Safety Award last November when he worked for Shanahan Engineering Limited. The Company presents awards for outstanding safety performance in the field. The prize was £100, which had to be donated to a Charity of his choice. As his family are strong supporters of SOS he decided to donate the money to our charity. A huge thank you to Gareth and to Shanahan Engineering.

Elaine, our representative from Morpeth, receives the cheque from Gareth