‘HELP’S THERE AT THE END OF THE PHONE’
Army veteran Martin was homeless and broke, until National Lottery-supported Veterans Aid stepped in…
Six years ago Martin was diagnosed with a genetic heart condition that almost destroyed his life. He walked into Hammersmith Hospital a fit and active 52year-old ex-squaddie and left a frail old man, afraid that every day might be his last.
“It changed my life from that moment,” says Martin. “Suddenly I felt vulnerable. It’s like I’m falling apart.”
Martin joined the Welsh Guards when he was 16 and left after 10 years when a job opportunity opened up in the United States.
“In retrospect I wish I’d stayed in the Army,” he says. “It’s like losing a limb. Being in the military is a language and an emotion, and you don’t you realise that until you’ve left.”
Martin had a good career in IT, but gave it up in 2000 to care for his elderly parents in the UK. But it was when he was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy – an irregular heartbeat – six years ago that his world fell apart.
“Everything changed. I couldn’t go back to full-time work and take the stress anymore,” he says. “The doctors have had to stop my heart and restart it again six times in order to get it beating regularly.”
Martin cashed in his pension and stocks but the money ran out and he ended up sleeping on friends’ sofas. Then someone told him about Veterans Aid, which has benefited from National Lottery support.
“I called them and they found me a flat in Earl’s Court in August this year and helped me sort out some benefits – something I’ve never done before.
“Veterans Aid has been the limb I lost. It’s just knowing someone’s there at the end of the phone. I can’t speak highly enough of them.”