Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Veteran’s ride for storm-hit centre
IT has long been said a dog is a man’s best friend, but Army veteran Sammy Stewart has got more reason than most to be grateful to his top “Buddy”.
Sammy, 35, says his golden Labrador Buddy changed his life after he attempted suicide earlier this year due to post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Now Sammy wants to do something to help the Arbroath Animal Rescue Centre, where he found his new best pal.
The centre suffered around £3,000 of damage during Storm Arwen and next month Sammy is aiming to cycle 63 miles from his home in Aberdeen to Arbroath to raise money for repairs.
Sammy joined the armed forces in 2003 at the age of 17. He served in both Iraq and Afghanistan between 2005 and 2008.
When he left the Army in 2009, Sammy did not think he had any mental scars from his service, but he says the things he saw eventually caught up with him. “During my time in both conflicts I saw a lot of fighting on the ground and was involved with situations with mines and IEDs (improvised explosive devices),” he said.
“It must have been around 2012 things became difficult for me and I had some mental health issues.”
He received support at that time for PTSD but when that came to an end, Sammy was left to deal with things for himself.
Life improved for Sammy when he met his partner Caitlin Flett and he made a new life for himself with her and her two children, Emilie and Dylan.
However, he relapsed in August this year and attempted suicide.
Sammy said: “There is little or no follow-up help for veterans like myself so I just got on with things but I spent every night drinking, trying to hide my problems.
“I suffered a bad relapse which resulted in me making an attempt to take my own life.
“Thank goodness that failed but I knew I was needing help. That’s when I thought about the idea of getting a companion dog.
“Caitlin found out about the Arbroath Animal Rescue Centre and we got in touch.
“Everyone there was brilliant and I met Buddy – who was called Popcorn at the time.”
Sammy said: “He is amazing and has completely turned my life around.
“When I get home he puts his paws around me to give me a cuddle – Buddy has completely changed my life.”
The Arbroath centre was badly damaged in the storm and when Sammy heard what happened, he decided to help raise money for repairs.
Initially Sammy reckoned the cycle would take around four hours but he has since contacted several football clubs in Angus and is planning to stop off at their grounds along the way.
“I made up my mind to cycle between Aberdeen and the centre in Arbroath,” he said.
“It’s a distance of 63 miles and I aim to do it on January 8.
“I am involved with Stonehaven Junior FC who have a men’s mental health group and through that I have contacted clubs including Forfar, Brechin, Montrose and Arbroath and I’m hoping to be able to stop off at at least some of them along the way.”
Sammy said his initial fundraising target was around £1,000 but already the total has exceeded £2,000.
He said: “I only dreamt up the idea around a week ago and already it has taken off big time.”
A spokesman for the Arbroath Animal Rescue Centre said: “We are very grateful indeed to Sammy for raising money to help carry out the repairs caused by the damage in Storm Arwen.
“We lost our summer house in the paddock and our fencing by the centre as well as damage to our rabbit house roof but that needed replacing anyway as it leaks. We don’t have cost for anything yet but we think we are looking at around £3, 000.”
The spokesman added: “Rescue can be very emotional and hard work. For us, it’s all about the animals but when you find the perfect family, and we see the difference it makes to them both.”
Donations to the fundraiser can be made online.