Veterans’ centre inspired by the hero who saved his brother’s life
TRANSFORMATION OF OLD AIRPORT BUILDING IS ‘THANK-YOU’ FOR KIDNEY DONATION
AS a boy of 11, Dan Redshaw had a heart transplant.
But two years ago Dan, now 35, suffered near-fatal renal failure due to the anti-rejection drugs he had to take.
His brother Jayson stepped up and donated a kidney, giving him a new chance of life.
Now Dan is repaying his brother’s ultimate gift.
As a young man Jayson had served his country with five-and-a-half years in the Royal Engineers but he came back from a six-month stint in Afghanistan broken after his best friend was killed by a roadside bomb.
So, with the brothers’ father, Dave, Dan is turning a derelict airport building at Barton Aerodrome, Eccles, into a place for services veterans to combat post-traumatic stress syndrome.
The country’s first airport terminal, a Grade II-listed building, which became derelict, is being transformed into The Veterans Garage.
The cost of the project is £1.6m but local and national firms have provided services for free to get the job done.
It will be a garage where classic cars will be restored – and much more.
In partnership with the NHS it will provide counselling for veterans.
The first part of the restoration was officially opened this month – a lounge and bar serving refreshments from 9am to 6pm, seven days a week.
The family share a love of all things automotive – from classic and supercars to motorcycles and scooters.
They thought a car and motorcycle restoration centre run by and for veterans could help them combat posttraumatic stress disorder, make new friends and integrate with the local community through a shared interest.
Dan said: “I noticed a big change in Jayson mentally when he came back from Afghanistan so my dad and I started this for him. We’ve been given the airport terminal building which we want to restore in 1930s Art Deco style and we’ve had amazing support from companies and the community.
“We’ve had about £600,000 worth of in-kind support, from scaffolding to skips, and have an amazing team of design and construction professionals all donating their time for free.”
The lounge and bar is ‘a cool, vibrant space which younger veterans particularly like where we can offer everything from a cup of tea to counselling.’
Dan added: “The Garage will provide a community automotive club which supports military and blue light service veterans.
“We are restoring the former terminal building into a social space themed on its Art Deco glamour of aviation past. The barns will become a smokehouse restaurant which will provide employability and qualifications.
“The restoration garages will not be commercial but strictly for therapy and social inclusion, with again qualifications available.”
Dan says the Veterans Garage is also his way of saying thank-you to Jayson for giving him one of his kidneys.
“I had a heart transplant when I was 11 and the drugs I’ve had to take sent me into end-stage renal failure. Jayson donated a kidney so this is my way of thanking him for my new lease of life,” said Dan, who worked in the construction industry for 15 years.
Jayson, 29, served with the Royal Engineers from 2008, and was on duty when his best friend, Sapper Elijah Bond, was killed. He now works for an office refurbishment company, but the memory remains vivid.
He explained: “I was at a checkpoint in Afghanistan and we saw the bomb go off. It did affect me. When I came home I found it difficult to cope with depression and being out of the Army. I did suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome.
“This place which my brother and father have created is helping. It keeps you occupied, and meeting others who know what you have been through and understand is great therapy. It is a way of getting back that camaraderie which you had in the Army – and miss.”
The old terminal was donated by Peel Holdings, the owners of the aerodrome, now called City Airport.
Dan said: “We are one of only 12 accredited drop-in centres across the country. This is part of a Confederation of Service Charities initiative called ASDIC (Association of Ex-Service Drop-In Centres)
“The NHS Military Veterans Service have clinics running here now so we have the clinical help along with the social inclusion side.”