‘My ex-military father tragically took his own life now I’m raising money to help others'

Connor's begetter adjacent met Queen Elizabeth II portion connected duty. (Image: Connor Webb)

A young antheral is raising funds for ex-servicemen aft his begetter took his ain beingness upon leaving the army.

November is Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month, and Connor Webb, 22, launched a fundraiser for a foundation adjacent to his heart: One is Too Many.

Connor said his father, James Alan Webb, 54, had struggled to set backmost to beingness aft leaving the military and tragically took his ain beingness successful 2020.

He said: “It was a shock, arsenic you tin imagine. He spent 22 years arsenic a sergeant large successful the British service and past aft that worked successful backstage information successful Afghanistan and Iraq, helium adjacent met Queen Elizabeth II.

“After that, helium came location and conscionable started moving a mean life. He tried antithetic jobs, but thing worked out.

“For me, it's conscionable been truly hard to travel to presumption with what happened. It conscionable benignant of deed maine arsenic a shock, and I went into enactment mode conscionable to effort to instrumentality my caput disconnected it.

“It's rather hard to bash household events. He utilized to beryllium there, and helium utilized to beryllium the astir fun; helium was the 1 that would marque america enactment up each night, and present that conscionable doesn't happen. So it's conscionable - I deliberation it's truly affected a batch of my family.”

James Alan Webb spent 22 years arsenic a sergeant large successful the British Army. (Image: Connor Webb)

Connor hopes the funds helium raises volition assistance others who are struggling. (Image: Connor Webb)

Conor has present decided to rise wealth to assistance others who whitethorn beryllium facing a akin situation. 

He continued: “I've chosen to bash a fundraiser for One is Too Many; it's a Forces Employment Charity, and it supports veterans who person near the service, nary substance the magnitude of clip that they've served. It helps radical with intelligence wellness issues and tin besides assistance enactment veterans erstwhile they are looking for occupation opportunities.

“I'm doing the Boxing Day dip successful Sunderland, which is going to beryllium perfectly freezing. I’ll beryllium doing it with my spouse Eva, she is doing it for Women's Aid truthful we're some doing it unneurotic and conscionable hoping to rise arsenic overmuch wealth arsenic imaginable for some charities.”

Connor aims to rise £500 for the foundation and is passionate astir hitting this target.

James Alan Webb met Queen Elizabeth II portion connected duty. (Image: Connor Webb)

He continues: “Another crushed I’ve chosen One is Too Many is due to the fact that it doesn't conscionable assistance veterans; it besides helps families of those who person been successful the military. It tin beryllium rather hard connected household members.”

The charity offers radical and idiosyncratic meetings wherever ex-military members tin question enactment successful settling backmost into mean beingness aft leaving the forces.

Connor said: “When it happened, it was the time aft my brother's birthday. To person that hap the time earlier helium went to person a solemnisation has conscionable been truly hard for him.

“And arsenic well, for my mum, with my dada moving successful the army, she was fundamentally a full-time mother, adjacent money-wise it's conscionable been a struggle due to the fact that we had fundamentally 2 incomes, and past it's conscionable been a conflict ever since helium had passed.”

On his fundraiser, Connor said the foundation helium is raising wealth for tin beryllium life-changing. He wrote: “Their enactment is crucial, arsenic they purpose to trim the stigma astir intelligence wellness and termination portion helping veterans reintegrate into society, offering occupation enactment and intelligence wellness resources.

“Every donation helps them proceed their captious enactment and tin marque a existent quality successful preventing different families from experiencing the aforesaid heartbreaking nonaccomplishment that excavation has.”

The wealth raised by Connor’s fundraiser volition enactment veterans and their families. He hopes to execute his extremity arsenic a tribute to his father.

If you are struggling and request support, interaction Samaritans time oregon night, 365 days a year.

You tin telephone them for escaped connected 116 123, email them astatine jo@samaritans.org, oregon sojourn www.samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.