The following message is from our "Head of Operations" at holidays4heroes ... and it proves things are working!
"The 12 month anniversary of Holidays4heroes as a real life grown up outfit, to mark the anniversary I thought I’d throw together a brief statement about what we’ve achieved this year.
Books will be forwarded to the accountant on Jan 4th to be signed off, so although the figures below are reasonably accurate they aren’t to the exact penny.
HOLIDAYS
This year 61 families have enjoyed respite care, holidays, trips and skives varying from Lapland, Egypt, Spain, Los Angeles, Florida and the Dominican Republic.
Already earmarked for 2010 are 56 families.
We still have people currently in Spain and one family of a chap injured in an IED incident currently en route to the Isle of Wight.
Hols4heroes has funded flights, passports, hire vehicles, airport transport, spending money, sundry money, villa hire & villa maintenance in many cases.
WELFARE
We are becoming better at this with countless resources at our fingertips.
I won’t list cases, there are too many and keeping peoples persec and integrity and self pride intact are important to us, and I’d hate for them to read their story in the public domain unless its already out there.
- We’ve stopped 11 repossessions, 7 evictions and homed 6 homeless ex servicemen.
- We’ve dealt with 14 bankruptcies and countless more IVAs.
- We’ve stopped 26 bailliff cases (one way or another, not often the most straight forward way)
- We’ve provided transport, furniture, white goods, bedding, disabled equipment, laptops, desk tops, phones, alarms, utility payments, TVs, stopped medal sales, replaced medals, moved house for people, referred over 35 cases to SSAFA and RBL, decorated, moved rubbish, visited and shown caring to elderly veterans. Provided B&Bs, provided school uniforms, clothing, refuge for wives who have needed removing from hostile home environments. Provided Christmas and Birthday presents for families in need, same goes for Christmas food and vouchers just to name a few.
HIGH POINTS
Spatula challenge was the highest single earner, netting us just over £10,000 in a single event, Sgt Slingsby being photographed with Pun VC, countless auction items being sold at extortionate prices, getting to meet some of the recipients of what we do. Sending a Bren gun to Belfast, watching an IED victim make a home-made colostomy bag out of a fanta bottle, a johnny and two rubber bands so he didn't have to walk from the bar to the bog in Spain. Watching Auntie Stella cry
PARTICULAR THANKS TO:
- Spanish Dave - for being my right hand, never let us down in blagging and getting properties for the blokes
- Blue Sophist - for running Slingsby and overseeing the www.sgtslingsby.org site.
- Meridian - for his hot IT skills and internet and computer cleverness
- Cait - for coming up with the Slingsby idea and name 5 years ago, where all this stems from
- YesItsMe and GRB - for the auctions on ARRSE
- Pararegtom, Bumper & Banker - for introducing us to Max Arthur and Cliff Parisi and tirelessly campaigning around London for us, also Bumper and Banker for keeping me level headed and stopping me running off on crusades and on silly tangents
- Brummietankie - for his support in Plymouth with the family who tragically lost two children and a couple of other cases.
- Silent donators and constant supporters (you know who you are) too many to mention…..
- Banker - once more for being fundamental in our forward progression into what is looking like becoming a charity
- The COs - for allowing us to exist on the ARRSE website.
- MWL946 - for being a solid and outspoken supporter and campaigner in the land of the porridge wog
- Each and every person that’s donated, provided an auction item, sent PMs of support, offering help, equipment and time.
- Will & George for cycling 400 miles and hiking up the country's 3 biggest peaks to raise cash for us (exceptionally proud of that one)
- Passing Bells (you know why you ugly git
- The Red Devils - for accommodating our jumpers.
- Mittmayo and his mum, & Gundolph - coins, hotels, continued tireless support
- Property owners in La Torre and plots in UK - for giving countless freebie and discounted weeks to our blokes
THE FUTURE
- Working closely with Banker and some of his contacts we are investigating the path to charitable status. Sadly due to family issues here with me, that’s been on the back burner for the last month, but that’s due to change in coming weeks.
- The US will be regularly listed as an available destination, alot of time has been spent speaking with Disney resort type venues, long haul airlines in an attempt to offer life time and memorable holidays to those who deserve it.
- Next year will probably see us spending more time on the holidays as sound and solid contacts have been made with SSAFA, RBL, Combat Stress & BLESMA. Therefore with a little luck our QRF facility will be needed a little less frequently ( Yeah right)
- We have a very very pretty part time assistant now here at HQ Hols4heroes. She is relieving me of some of the more mundane and dull admin parts of this set up, freeing me and the rest of the team to focus on grown up stuff.
- We'll have to expand the team, appointing regional coordinators has begun with two or three in place, within six months or so this will probably triple.
- We are getting referrals on a daily [and often twice and thrice daily] rate now, due to various departments within the Forces beginning to take us seriously.
IMPACT
Without your contributions all of this grinds to a halt, I am lucky I get to speak to the majority of the families, widows and those directly affected by service life and its pit falls. I am guilty of not passing on enough thanks and feedback from them so you are aware of where your money is being spent.
Often I am moved to lumpy throated gayness when I speak to the wives of blokes who gave their tomorrow, its an absolute privilege to play a small but I feel important role in making them still feel wanted, appreciated and more importantly grateful for the sacrifices their loved ones, and our mates have made.
AMOUNT RAISED [and spent]
By noon tomorrow I will post the figures of what we’ve raised in the last 12 months and a brief breakdown of where its all gone, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we are tickling the £85 - 90k marker.
Thank you again for a phenomenal year, one that's smashed all my expectations to pieces."
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Holidays 4 Heroes is an informal group of people that assists wounded service personnel and their families get a precious break from the routine of rehab, hospital appointments and visits to welfare offices by facilitating holidays away from it all in accommodation donated by our sponsors in the UK and abroad. 
Deals with the cases that either lie outside the normal remit of the main Service Charities, or require a faster response than they can usually provide. Sometimes the cases require financial assistance, a little bit of nudging in the right direction for long-term help, or the application of a bit of expertise.